In what experts are attributing to both the current economic slide and the rise of alternative digital devices, ownership of television sets in the U.S. has dropped for the first time in 20 years.

According to Nielsen, 96.7 percent of American households currently own TVs, down from 98.9 percent.

Here’s The New York Times:

There are two reasons for the decline, according to Nielsen. One is poverty: some low-income households no longer own TV sets, most likely because they cannot afford new digital sets and antennas.

The other is technological wizardry: young people who have grown up with laptops in their hands instead of remote controls are opting not to buy TV sets when they graduate from college or enter the work force, at least not at first. Instead, they are subsisting on a diet of television shows and movies from the Internet.