About 40% of Americans have cut back on streaming services in the last three months because of financial concerns, according to a recent report
Americans are quitting subscription streaming services in droves as the cost of living continues to climb, a recent report has found.
Streaming services such as Netflix and Hulu have become increasingly popular in recent years, but Deloitte’s 2026 Digital Media Trends report, released late last month, shows how Americans are getting frustrated over the cost to have their favorite movies and TV shows at the click of a button.
“As the cost of everyday essentials like food and housing remain high, many consumers are reevaluating their budgets and cutting back on nonessential expenditures,” Deloitte said in its survey results. “At the same time, prices for media and entertainment services continue to climb.”
Yeah, I am calling bullshit on that explanation. The services that were enjoyable just a few years ago are now absolutely dog shit. Low quality shows, unexplained cancellations, increased number and length of ads, release schedules meant to keep you on forever, password and location crackdowns, VPN rejections…
It’s become a garbage product, even if people had tons of disposable income they’d think three times before subscribing again.
This is the point I was looking for. I’d happily pay a reasonable price for Netflix, and I did for years. However, I was rewarded for my patronage by massive price hikes combined with a consistently worsening product. The end came when I realized that I didn’t even use it anymore because it sucked so much. If I wanted to pay exorbitant prices to watch ads, I’d go back to cable.