Cable Networks Remain Profitable Despite Cord-Cutting—but Upheaval Is Coming

‘It’s going to be really bad for independent networks’

Just a few weeks into 2021, the cable TV industry seemed primed for a significant thinning of its ranks.

On Jan. 22, NBCUniversal said that it would shut down its cable sports network, NBCSN, later this year, a move that came shortly after the independent El Rey Network also ceased operations and other outlets prepared to rebrand. That led to speculation about the fate of other media companies’ bloated cable portfolios, which intensified days later after AT&T CEO John Stankey told investors that one of his company’s top 2021 priorities would be “sunsetting legacy networks.”

But

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This story first appeared in the Feb. 22, 2021, issue of Adweek magazine. Click here to subscribe.