The Walt Disney Company saw the biggest lift in Nielsen’s Media Distributor Report for the January 2026 television measurement period, boosted primarily by stronger viewership to its sports programming on ESPN and ongoing interest in its bundled streaming apps.
Disney added 1.2 share points in January to finish with 11.9 percent of total television usage, nearly matching its 12.0 percent peak set in January 2025, Nielsen said on Tuesday. The performance narrowed the gap with YouTube, which led all distributors with a 12.5 percent share of total TV viewing during the four-week interval spanning December 29, 2025 through January 25, 2026.
ESPN recorded an 82 percent month-over-month increase in viewing, fueled by coverage of the College Football Playoffs and national championship games. ESPN’s performance alone contributed nearly a full share point to Disney’s overall total for the month.
The company also benefited from gains at its ABC affiliates, where viewing rose 10 percent compared with December. Programming highlights included multiple NFL games, the Citrus Bowl, returning broadcast dramas and seasonal specials like “New Year’s Rockin’ Eve” and “The Rose Bowl Parade.” ABC’s “High Potential” and “ABC World News Tonight” ranked as the top broadcast programs in their respective genres for January.
Netflix ranked in third place among distributors with 8.8 percent of total TV usage, Nielsen said. Overall Netflix viewing increased 1 percent compared with December. Its original series “Stranger Things” was the top streaming program for the second consecutive month.
Comcast’s NBC Universal and Versant — which are being reported together in the Media Distributor Gauge following the early January spin-off of NBC Universal’s cable networks — posted an 8.5 percent share of total TV usage, up 0.3 share points from December. NFL games airing on NBC and simulcast on Peacock contributed to a 5 percent overall monthly increase for the combined entity. Peacock also saw gains from a new season of its original series “The Traitors.”
Telemundo affiliates experienced a 13 percent jump in viewing, powered by the sports reality series “Exatlón,” lifting the network’s monthly share contribution to 0.7 points.
Fox increased its share to 7.4 percent of total TV viewing in January, up 0.4 share points month over month. The gain was largely attributable to a 17 percent increase in viewing at Fox News, which accounted for more than half of the company’s overall share growth.
