The number of people shelling out for cable TV is on the decline, possibly opening the door for newer TV models to finally break through to the mainstream. According to data gathered by market research firm SNL Kagan, cable companies saw a noticeable drop in the total number of subscribers during the second quarter of 2010, a first for an industry that has thus far seen nothing but growth.

The number of cable subscribers dropped by 711,000, according to SNL Kagan, with six out of eight cable providers reporting their worst quarterly subscriber losses to date. Other parts of the industry were able to add just enough subscribers to make the net loss more like 216,000. Cable's share of the pay-TV market dropped slightly too, from 63.6 percent to just 61 percent during the quarter.

What's behind this apparent exodus from cable TV? For one, the second quarter of the year is typically slow thanks to housing turnover in college towns, but that's not all that's contributing to the drop. "Although it is tempting to point to over-the-top video as a potential culprit, we believe economic factors such as low housing formation and a high unemployment rate contributed to subscriber declines in the second quarter," SNL Kagan analyst Mariam Rondeli said in a statement.

Even if online video isn't the main culprit, there's still a prime opportunity for the Internet to swoop in and snatch up some of those that have shunned cable. With the public introduction of Hulu Plus imminent, Netflix's growing stable of streaming movies and shows, and increased availability of shows from the likes of iTunes, Xbox Live, and Amazon video on demand, TV addicts have plenty of online content to choose from.

SNL Kagan expects more than 3 million households in the US to be watching Hulu and other online options as their main TV solution by the end of 2010—double the number from 2009—and for that number to rise to 4.3 million in 2011.

As someone who canceled cable four years ago, I can attest that even when you spend money on whole seasons of your favorite shows from iTunes and pay for a Netflix subscription, you can still save money. Although most of the country still watches traditional TV, it's even money that the drop in cable TV subscribers is the beginning of a trend.