By Reuters
January 20, 2026 – 7:07 AM PST
(Reuters) – According to audience measurement firm Nielsen, streaming services accounted for nearly half of all TV viewership in the U.S. in December, driven by Netflix’s Christmas Day NFL broadcasts and the anticipated final season of “Stranger Things.”
Streaming services achieved a record 47.5% of total U.S. television usage, with an impressive 55.1 billion viewing minutes on Christmas Day alone, further establishing their lead over traditional broadcast and cable, Nielsen’s monthly report, The Gauge, indicated.
Google’s (GOOGL.O) YouTube achieved the largest share among streaming services, capturing 12.7% of total TV viewing last month.
This data reflects a significant transformation in the television landscape, with viewers increasingly favoring on-demand content and live sports shifting to digital platforms.
On Christmas Day itself, streaming took a remarkable 54% of total TV usage, marking the highest single-day share ever recorded for this category.
The combination of two NFL games on Netflix (NFLX.O), new episodes of “Stranger Things,” and Amazon (AMZN.O) Prime Video’s late NFL game drove this surge in demand.
Netflix saw a 10% increase in viewership from November, with “Stranger Things” generating over 15 billion viewing minutes, making it the most-watched streaming title in December.
In contrast, broadcast television accounted for 21.4% and cable for 20.2% of TV viewership in December, as reported by Nielsen.
This shift in viewing habits is prompting consolidation within the industry, exemplified by Netflix’s bid of $82.7 billion to acquire Warner Bros Discovery’s (WBD.O) studio and streaming assets.
Reporting by Harshita Mary Varghese in Bengaluru; Editing by Leroy Leo
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