pay TV

noun

ˈpā-ˈtē-ˈvē 

: a service providing noncommercial television programming (such as recent movies and entertainment specials) by means of a scrambled signal to subscribers who are provided with a decoder

—often hyphenated when used attributively

a pay-TV operator

called also pay television

compare pay cable, subscription tv

Examples of pay TV in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

It’s also included in pay TV bases, and streams with a subscription to Disney+ or ESPN Unlimited. — Steven Louis Goldstein, New York Times, 20 Aug. 2026

But like all cable networks, MS NOW has to manage the loss of pay TV customers, which provide a major source of revenue. — Los Angeles Times, 19 Aug. 2026

Our strategy is to combine the strengths of free TV, pay TV and streaming, of advertising, subscription and distribution revenues into one powerful ecosystem with unmatchable reach. — Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 11 Aug. 2026

Currently more than 80% of Versant's revenue stems from the pay TV business. — Lillian Rizzo, CNBC, 6 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1954, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for pay TV

• be
• bee
• bree
• cree
• fee
• flea
• flee
• free
• gee
• ghee
• glee
• he