It’s hard to believe that we’re about to turn the page on yet another year. As we approach 2015, let’s look once more at the 2014 cable industry happenings that will affect your business moving forward.

Here are the top three stories we heard about in 2014 that will likely have an effect on your business in 2015:

1. Over-the-top content is everywhere. Step aside, Netflix. In 2014, from Sony to Verizon to HBO to Showtime, we saw a slew of companies dip their toes into the OTT market. Undoubtedly, OTT content has shaken up the industry, and it appears as though it’ll continue to do so in the future. The fact that Roku sold 10 million devices guarantees that OTT isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. On top of that, nearly every other house in America currently subscribes to an OTT service, and we expect that number will increase in the coming years.
2. Net neutrality. It remains to be seen whether cable companies will be given the green light by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to charge for access to a faster lane of traffic. This year, we heard a whole lot about net neutrality, the concept by which all Internet content receives equal treatment. Many groups want to keep net neutrality intact, but there are others who see the issue differently and feel as though broadband providers should be able to charge more for prioritized access. If the FCC does allow companies to charge for prioritized access, Comcast has already said it’ll certainly do so.
3. Is America becoming a subscription-based economy? These days, customers don’t go to the video store to rent movies. Instead, they subscribe to HBO or Netflix. For the most part, people don’t buy music either; they use Spotify to stream their favorite songs. Increasingly, we’re seeing trends where people are buying subscriptions to services rather than buying items on their own. It’ll be interesting to see what happens in the world of cable, particularly when the idea of a la carte pricing comes to fruition.

It’ll be exciting to see what 2015 has in store for all of us. From our team to yours, Happy Holidays!