Ad-Supported Viewing Sees Gains in Q2...

On Tuesday, Nielsen reported that ad-supported content increased its share of total TV viewing in Q2 2025.

According to Nielsen’s Ad Supported Gauge, which provides the broadest view of the portion of television that delivers advertising across broadcast, cable, and streaming, content with ads viewing accounted for 73.6% of overall TV viewing, up +1.2 share points during the second quarter of 2025.

Despite the upswing, overall TV viewing was down -9% during the just-concluded quarter when compared to the first quarter. Viewing of overall TV ad-supported content was also down -8% during the second quarter.

Ad-supported streaming remained flat quarter to quarter, but declines were registered in overall ad-supported broadcast TV and ad-supported cable TV viewing as they both fell -16% and -8%, respectively.

When looking at the share of ad-supported TV viewing in the total viewer category, streaming took the largest portion, accounting for 45.3%.

Despite the slowdown in the release of new titles and movies, the continued consumption of legacy content and sports gave streaming platforms the edge over linear categories. Cable had 28.7% of the ad-supported TV viewing, as it was buoyed by a strong news cycle and playoff action in the NBA and NHL. 

Finally, broadcast TV viewing occupied the smallest portion of the ad-supported TV viewing, with 26%. The conclusion of many of its titles in late April and May led to viewers migrating away from these outlets during this hiatus period.