A million Massachusetts households say goodbye to cable in massive 12-year collapse

At the turn of the century, Massachusetts households—like much of the country—welcomed cable TV with open arms. But more than two decades later, the “channel surfing” era is nearly over. State data shows cable subscriptions in Massachusetts have fallen almost 45 percent from their peak, dropping from 2.19 million in 2013 to fewer than 1.2 million as of December 2024—far lower than in 2000 when state data begins. In 2000, roughly 1.9 million Bay Staters tuned in to local and national channels through a cable connection. Over the next decade, subscriptions climbed past 2 million and plateaued around 2.1 million before a steep decline began in the late 2010s. Since then, subscriber counts have plunged by hundreds of thousands each year. The trend mirrors what’s happening nationwide—streaming giants like Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, and YouTube have replaced traditional cable packages, while smartphones and smart TVs have made living room remotes nearly obsolete.