Sling TV closed the first quarter of the year with 2.1 million subscribers, which is not only a drop in the number of users when compared to the previous quarter, but also the first quarter of last year.
As a reminder, the first quarter of this year was the first full quarter since Sling TV increased the cost of its live TV plans. It was also the quarter when Sling introduced a new ABC fee which increased the price of both the Sling Blue and Orange & Blue plans in a number of locations.
The confirmation of 2.1 million Sling TV subscribers as of March 31, 2023, was provided by Dish Network, and as part of its latest quarterly results. Dish also confirmed that it closed Q1 with a total of 9.20 million pay-TV subscribers. This breaks down to include the 2.1 million Sling TV subscribers and 7.10 million Dish TV subscribers.
Overall, Dish lost 552,000 pay-TV subscribers during the first quarter, and 462,000 when compared to the first quarter of the year before.
In terms of Sling TV, the 2.1 million reported for the first quarter represents a loss of around 230,000 subscribers when compared to the 2.33 million reported for the fourth quarter of 2022. It also represents a loss when compared to the 2.25 million subscribers reported for the first quarter of 2022.
In between the first and fourth quarters of last year, Sling TV’s subscriber base managed to climb as high as 2.41 million before dropping back down to the 2.33 million reported at the end of the year.
