Streaming television continued its upward climb in April 2025, capturing a record 44.3% of total TV viewing, according to Nielsen’s latest edition of The Gauge. For the third consecutive month, YouTube ranked as the top media distributor, growing to a platform-high 12.4% of all television usage – its largest share to date.
Nielsen’s April reporting period spanned from March 31 through April 28, tracking weekly performance in alignment with the broadcast calendar.
Disney followed YouTube with a 10.7% share, up 0.2 percentage points from March. The company’s performance was bolstered by marquee sports programming across its portfolio, including the NFL Draft, NCAA Women’s Basketball Championship, and early rounds of the NBA Playoffs. It also benefited from multichannel engagement with the long-running medical drama Grey’s Anatomy, which logged 3.9 billion streaming minutes across Hulu and Netflix, aided by new episodes airing on ABC.
Paramount Global notched the largest monthly gain among measured distributors, rising 0.4 points to 8.9% of TV usage. A significant portion of that increase stemmed from stronger ratings at CBS, reflecting continued appetite for linear network programming when paired with streaming offerings. Comcast’s NBCUniversal followed at 8.2%, inching up from 8.0% the prior month.
Warner Bros. Discovery held its ground at 6.7%, supported by sports and prestige drama. TNT delivered 18 NBA playoff games through April 27, contributing to a 58% lift in viewership. Meanwhile, HBO’s The White Lotus drew 3.7 billion minutes on Max, placing it as the second-most watched streaming title of the month.
The April data underscores broader shifts in audience behavior. Compared to a year ago, streaming usage rose 15%, adding 5.9 share points. Broadcast television declined 7%, losing 1.4 points, while cable sank 16%, shedding 4.6 points. These changes have placed a premium on multichannel and multi-platform strategies as legacy broadcasters adapt to evolving consumption habits.
YouTube and Roku, two of the report’s biggest digital beneficiaries, both set new platform records. Roku reached 2.4% of total TV usage, up 0.2 points from March and 67% from a year earlier. Its growth aligns with expanded access to premium services such as Max directly through its interface.
Despite the shift toward digital, live sports continue to anchor linear viewing. Broadcast TV rose modestly to 20.8% of usage, buoyed by CBS’s coverage of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship, which drew the month’s largest broadcast audience with 18.3 million viewers. The network also saw viewership gains for the Masters golf tournament, up 36% from 2024 to 13 million viewers.
Cable also posted a small rebound, accounting for 24.5% of April’s TV usage. ESPN’s coverage of the NFL Draft averaged 6.4 million viewers, making it the most-watched cable telecast of the month. The NBA Playoffs boosted ESPN and TNT ratings, while FOX News Channel’s The Five dominated non-sports cable programming.
