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Number of commercial TV stations in the U.S. 1950-2017
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Number of commercial TV stations in the U.S. 1950-2017
Number of commercial TV stations in the United States from 1950 to 2017
by Amy Watson,
last edited
Nov 21, 2019
In 2017, there were 1,761 commercial television stations on the air in the United States, slightly fewer than in previous years but still over a thousand more than in 2000. Over one hundred TV stations were sold in the U.S. in 2017, and as of October 2018 almost 120 stations had been sold that year.
Major English-language commercial networks in the United States include NBC, CBS, ABC and Fox, all of which have terrestrial TV stations of their own and are also aired on pay TV.
Advertising and commercial television
Whilst a 2017 survey revealed that the majority of U.S. adults who took part were very dissatisfied with the amount of commercials on cable and satellite TV, the very nature of commercial television is that it mainly relies on advertising to survive.
As an example, NBCUniversal generates billions of U.S. dollars in broadcasting TV ad revenue every year, and the cost of a 30-second spot during the broadcast of NBC’s ‘Thursday Night Football’ has been known to exceed half a million dollars. Companies ranging from Toyota to Taco Bell spend millions on TV advertising every week, and without that regular revenue source many TV stations would struggle to stay financially afloat.
Number of commercial TV stations in the United States from 1950 to 2017
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by Amy Watson,
last edited
Nov 21, 2019
In 2017, there were 1,761 commercial television stations on the air in the United States, slightly fewer than in previous years but still over a thousand more than in 2000. Over one hundred TV stations were sold in the U.S. in 2017, and as of October 2018 almost 120 stations had been sold that year.
Major English-language commercial networks in the United States include NBC, CBS, ABC and Fox, all of which have terrestrial TV stations of their own and are also aired on pay TV.
Advertising and commercial television
Whilst a 2017 survey revealed that the majority of U.S. adults who took part were very dissatisfied with the amount of commercials on cable and satellite TV, the very nature of commercial television is that it mainly relies on advertising to survive.
As an example, NBCUniversal generates billions of U.S. dollars in broadcasting TV ad revenue every year, and the cost of a 30-second spot during the broadcast of NBC’s ‘Thursday Night Football’ has been known to exceed half a million dollars. Companies ranging from Toyota to Taco Bell spend millions on TV advertising every week, and without that regular revenue source many TV stations would struggle to stay financially afloat.
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- Release date
- December 2017
- Region
- United States
- Survey time period
- 1950 to 2017
Source
- Show sources information
- Show publisher information
- Release date
- December 2017
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- Region
- United States
- Survey time period
- 1950 to 2017
Other statistics on the topic
Television in the U.S.
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Television in the U.S.
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Statistics on "Television in the U.S."
- Industry financials
The most important statistics
- Value of mergers and acquisitions of local TV stations in the United States from 1996 to 2018 (in billion U.S dollars)Local TV: M&A value in the U.S. 1996-2018
- Estimated revenue of TV broadcasters in the United States from 2005 to 2018 (in million U.S. dollars)Revenue of U.S. TV broadcasters 2005-2018
- Revenue of TV broadcasters in the United States from 2010 to 2018, by source (in billion U.S. dollars)Revenue of U.S. TV broadcasters 2010-2018, by source
- Estimated expenses of U.S. TV broadcasters from 2007 to 2018 (in billion U.S. dollars)Expenses of U.S. television broadcasters 2007-2018
- Revenue of television production (NAICS 51211b) in the United States from 2009 to 2018 (in billion U.S. dollars)Revenue of television production in the U.S., 2009-2018
- Local television station revenue in the United States from 2016 to 2018 (in billion U.S. dollars)Local TV station revenues in the U.S. 2016-2018
- Market data
The most important statistics
- Number of commercial TV stations in the United States from 1950 to 2017Number of commercial TV stations in the U.S. 1950-2017
- Number of TV households in the United States from season 2000-2001 to season 2019-2020 (in millions)Number of TV households in the U.S. 2000-2020
- Number of TV households in the largest local TV markets in the United States in the broadcast season 2019-2020TV households in the largest local TV markets in the U.S. 2019-2020
- Weekly TV reach in the United States as of the 1st quarter of 2019, by age groupTV reach in the U.S. Q1 2019, by age
- TV reach in the United States in 2017 and 2018, by time periodTV reach in the U.S. 2017-2018, by time period
- Reach of TV shows/episodes on a typical weekday in the United States as of January 2018, by daypartTV shows/episodes reach on weekdays in the U.S. 2018, by daypart
- Number of original scripted TV series in the United States from 2009 to 2018Number of scripted TV series in the U.S. 2009-2018
- Leading TV series in the United States as of January 2019, by production costs per episode (in million U.S. dollars)Most expensive TV shows produced as of 2019
- Employment data
The most important statistics
- Total employment in U.S. broadcasting industries from 2001 to 2019 (in 1,000s)Employment in U.S. broadcasting industries 2001-2019
- Unemployment rate in the U.S. broadcasting* industry from 2001 to 2018Unemployment rate in the U.S. broadcasting industry 2001-2018
- Average hourly earnings of all employees in U.S. broadcasting industries from 2007 to 2018 (in U.S. dollars)Average hourly earnings in U.S. broadcasting industries 2007-2018
- Number of employees in local TV news in the United States from 2013 to 2018 (in thousands)Local TV news employment in the U.S. 2013-2018
- Average number of employees in a local TV news department in the United States in 2017 and 2018, by roleLocal TV news average employment in the U.S. 2017-2018, by role
- Share of female employees in behind-the-scenes jobs on cable TV programs in the United States in 2017-2018, by roleShare of females behind-the-scenes in cable TV in the U.S. 2018, by role
- Share of female employees in behind-the-scenes jobs on streaming TV programs in the United States in 2017-2018, by roleShare of females behind-the-scenes in TV streaming in the U.S. 2018, by role
- Market leaders
The most important statistics
- Leading cable networks in the United States in October 2019, by number of primetime viewers (in millions)Cable networks: number of primetime viewers in the U.S. October 2019
- Leading cable networks in the United States in 2017 and 2018, by number of primetime viewers (in millions)Leading cable networks in the U.S. 2017-2018
- Leading ad supported broadcast and cable networks in the United States in 2018, by average number of viewersMost watched TV networks in the U.S. 2018
- Leading cable news networks in the United States in October 2019, by number of primetime viewers (in 1,000s)U.S. cable news networks: number of viewers October 2019
- Leading cable news networks in the United States in 2017 and 2018, by number of primetime viewers (in thousands)U.S. cable news: number of primetime viewers 2017-2018
- Combined evening news audiences on U.S. television networks from 2016 to 2018 (in millions)Evening news audiences on U.S. television networks 2016-2018
- Consumption
The most important statistics
- Most viewed TV shows in the United States in the 2018/19 season (viewers in millions)Most viewed TV shows in the U.S. 2018/19
- Leading single telecast TV programs in the United States in 2018, based on total viewers (in millions)Top 10 single telecast TV programs in the U.S. 2018
- Leading syndicated TV programs in the United States from August 2017 to August 2018Leading syndicated programs on U.S. TV 2018
- Daily time spent watching TV per capita in the United States from 2014 to 2021 (in hours.minutes)U.S. media usage - time spent watching television 2014-2021
- Average daily time spent watching TV per capita in the United States in 2018, by gender (in hours)U.S. TV consumption: average viewing time in 2018, by gender
- Average daily time spent watching TV per capita in the United States in 2018, by age group (in hours)U.S. TV consumption: daily viewing time in 2018, by age
- Weekly time spent with traditional TV in the United States in 1st quarter 2011 and 3rd quarter 2018, by age (in minutes)Time spent with traditional TV in the U.S. 2018, by age
- Weekly time 12- to 17-year-olds spend watching TV in the United States in 1st quarter 2018, by source (in minutes)Time U.S. teens spent with TV 2018
- Consumer behavior
The most important statistics
- Most popular television shows based on audience demand in the United States from July 28 to August 3, 2019 (in million average demand expressions)Most in-demand TV shows in the U.S. 2019
- Leading favorite contemporary TV shows according to Millennials in the United States as of April 2018, by rating scoreContemporary TV shows with the highest ratings among Millennials in the U.S. 2018
- Favorability of selected television show genres among adults in the United States as of November 2018, by age groupPreferred TV show types in the U.S. 2018, by age group
- Share of binge-watchers in the United States as of April 2018, by genderBinge-watchers in the U.S. 2018, by gender
- Most common reasons for binge-watching TV series in the United States as of April 2018Binge-viewing reasons in the U.S. 2018
- Advertising
The most important statistics
- TV advertising revenue in the United States in 2018 and 2023 (in billion U.S. dollars)TV advertising revenue in the U.S. 2018-2023
- Leading advertisers on cable TV networks in the United States in 2018, by ad spend (in million U.S. dollars)Largest advertisers on cable TV networks in the U.S. 2018
- Share of online TV in TV advertising revenue in the United States from 2012 to 2018Share of online TV in TV advertising revenue in the U.S. 2012-2018
- Leading movie commercials in the United States in week ending November 10, 2019, by television advertising spending (in million U.S. dollars)Leading trailers in the U.S. November 2019, by weekly TV ad spend
- Leading TV shows on broadcast TV in the United States during the 2019/20 TV season, by cost of a 30-second spot (in U.S. dollars)Priciest shows for advertisers on broadcast TV in the U.S. 2019/20
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Statistics
- Regional radio and television corporations in Spain in 2018, by budget
- Peru: number of TV stations 2016-2018
- Peru: TV stations 2018, by region
- WarnerMedia revenue Q4 2017 - Q3 2019
- Turnover change of the broadcasting sector in the Netherlands 2017-2019
- Audience market share of regional public TV in the Netherlands 2012-2015, by province
- Employees in the U.S. media industry 2016
- Number of businesses in the U.S. media industry from 2008 to 2010, by sector
- Ranking of TV stations in Sweden H1 2018, by audience share
- Ranking of TV stations in Sweden H1 2018, by daily reach
- Number of Norwegian TV stations 1980-2015, by type of coverage
- Number of terrestrial TV stations in Sweden 2018, by owner
- Canada: TV channels watched by Quebecois youths 2014, by age
- TV channels available in Norway 2018, by genre
- TV channels available in Iceland 2018, by genre
- Industry revenue of »programming and broadcasting activities« in Slovakia 2011-2023
- Industry revenue of »programming and broadcasting activities« in Estonia 2011-2023
- Personnel costs of the information & communication sector in Romania 2008-2016
- Programming and broadcasting activities revenue in Malta 2010-2022
- Industry revenue of “broadcasting (except internet)“ in the U.S. 2011-2023
Statistics on "Television in the U.S. - Industry financials"
Statistics on "Television in the U.S. - Market data"
- Number of commercial TV stations in the U.S. 1950-2017
- Number of TV households in the U.S. 2000-2020
- TV households in the largest local TV markets in the U.S. 2019-2020
- TV reach in the U.S. Q1 2019, by age
- TV reach in the U.S. 2017-2018, by time period
- TV shows/episodes reach on weekdays in the U.S. 2018, by daypart
- Number of scripted TV series in the U.S. 2009-2018
- Most expensive TV shows produced as of 2019
Statistics on "Television in the U.S. - Employment data"
- Employment in U.S. broadcasting industries 2001-2019
- Unemployment rate in the U.S. broadcasting industry 2001-2018
- Average hourly earnings in U.S. broadcasting industries 2007-2018
- Local TV news employment in the U.S. 2013-2018
- Local TV news average employment in the U.S. 2017-2018, by role
- Share of females behind-the-scenes in cable TV in the U.S. 2018, by role
- Share of females behind-the-scenes in TV streaming in the U.S. 2018, by role
Statistics on "Television in the U.S. - Market leaders"
- Cable networks: number of primetime viewers in the U.S. October 2019
- Leading cable networks in the U.S. 2017-2018
- Most watched TV networks in the U.S. 2018
- U.S. cable news networks: number of viewers October 2019
- U.S. cable news: number of primetime viewers 2017-2018
- Evening news audiences on U.S. television networks 2016-2018
Statistics on "Television in the U.S. - Consumption"
- Most viewed TV shows in the U.S. 2018/19
- Top 10 single telecast TV programs in the U.S. 2018
- Leading syndicated programs on U.S. TV 2018
- U.S. media usage - time spent watching television 2014-2021
- U.S. TV consumption: average viewing time in 2018, by gender
- U.S. TV consumption: daily viewing time in 2018, by age
- Time spent with traditional TV in the U.S. 2018, by age
- Time U.S. teens spent with TV 2018
- Time spent co-viewing video content with family and friends in the U.S. 2018
Statistics on "Television in the U.S. - Consumer behavior"
Statistics on "Television in the U.S. - Advertising"
Further related statistics
- Regional radio and television corporations in Spain in 2018, by budget
- Peru: number of TV stations 2016-2018
- Peru: TV stations 2018, by region
- WarnerMedia revenue Q4 2017 - Q3 2019
- Turnover change of the broadcasting sector in the Netherlands 2017-2019
- Audience market share of regional public TV in the Netherlands 2012-2015, by province
- Employees in the U.S. media industry 2016
- Number of businesses in the U.S. media industry from 2008 to 2010, by sector
- Ranking of TV stations in Sweden H1 2018, by audience share
- Ranking of TV stations in Sweden H1 2018, by daily reach
- Number of Norwegian TV stations 1980-2015, by type of coverage
- Number of terrestrial TV stations in Sweden 2018, by owner
- Canada: TV channels watched by Quebecois youths 2014, by age
- TV channels available in Norway 2018, by genre
- TV channels available in Iceland 2018, by genre
- Industry revenue of »programming and broadcasting activities« in Slovakia 2011-2023
- Industry revenue of »programming and broadcasting activities« in Estonia 2011-2023
- Personnel costs of the information & communication sector in Romania 2008-2016
- Programming and broadcasting activities revenue in Malta 2010-2022
- Industry revenue of “broadcasting (except internet)“ in the U.S. 2011-2023
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