30.9% of American TV Homes Using Alternative Video Delivery

According to TVB analysis of Nielsen Media Research data for May 2011, a record number of American TV households are receiving video programming via an alternate delivery system (ADS), mostly via direct broadcast satellite, while wired-cable penetration has declined to a 21-year low. National ADS penetration hit 30.9% last month, an all-time high that is up from 30.3% in May 2010. Wired-cable penetration, on the other hand, declined to 60.6% in May 2011 from 61.1% in May 2010 -- the last time wired-cable penetration had been any lower was in November 1989.