The era of ad-free streaming being the default is officially over. A new report from Nielsen's Ad Supported Gauge for the second quarter of 2025 shows that content with commercials now accounts for 73.6% of all television viewing, a reality driven by streaming's resilience as traditional broadcast and cable continue to bleed audiences.
Legacy TV's slide: The growth in ad-supported viewing is happening almost entirely within streaming. While streaming's ad-backed audience held steady during the seasonal Q2 dip, viewership for ad-supported broadcast and cable plummeted by 16% and 8%, respectively, with streaming scooping up nearly all of the audience share lost by broadcast.
The YouTube effect: The data confirms a fundamental change in viewer habits, where tolerance for ads has become the norm. Much of this trend is anchored by YouTube; the video giant alone captured 12.8% of all TV time in June, almost all of it with ads, cementing its role as a key driver of the ad-supported ecosystem.
The tipping point: The Q2 data builds on a landmark moment from May, when total time spent on streaming services officially surpassed the combined viewership of broadcast and cable for the first time ever. The trend isn't just a momentary blip; it's the new baseline for how media is consumed.
The new default: The ad-supported tier is no longer just the budget-friendly alternative; it is now the mainstream standard for television. For streamers, media companies, and advertisers, the battle for eyeballs will be won or lost in the commercial break.
The wider view: This trend is reshaping the competitive landscape, with Netflix recently breaking into the top three streaming distributors for the first time, even as YouTube extends its lead. The pressure is also forcing legacy media giants to react, as the accelerating decline of traditional TV has companies like Warner Bros. Discovery reportedly exploring a radical split of their streaming and studio assets from their fading cable business.
