Paul Kagan, Cable TV Pioneer, Dies.

Paul Kagan passed away at 82 years of age at his home in Carmel, California. Kagan is one of the great analysts of the TV and cable era. His advice and his data were frequently sought out by the many players in the TV and cable ecosystem. Kagan was a major figure in the industry for over four decades.

Kagan is called by many, The Guru of Cable, and was inducted into the Cable Hall of Fame in 2011.

Kagan started as a sportswriter and then was an analyst at E.F. Hutton in New York City. Kagan was an early entrepreneur and set-up his own firm, Paul Kagan Associates in 1969.

Kagan wrote extensively about the economics of the cable industry as it expanded dramatically in the 70’s, 80’s and beyond. Cable TV has reigned King during much of Kagan’s professional life. Over the last few years, the cable industry has suffered the pain of cord-cutting. Kagan’s firm published dozens of newsletters, scores of datasets, sponsored conferences and provided consulting to many companies and organizations, across all meaningful media issues. Kagan was also early in beginning to cover the Internet and the digital disruption of traditional media.

As a successful entrepreneur, Kagan sold his company to Primedia in 2000. Today the research company continues to operate as Kagan, a unit of S&P Global Market Intelligence.  

A bright teenager, Kagan graduated from Taft High School in the Bronx in 1954 at age 16 and then attended and graduated from Hunter College in New York City with a B.A. in Communications. Kagan had an early career as a sportswriter and continued to be a sports fan throughout his life.

“His body will rest at El Carmelo Cemetery in Pacific Grove by the rolling waves of the ocean, but his soul will be in heaven,” his family said. “We hope that they have a press box up there so he can call the games for all the Yankees who have gone before him and are no doubt playing baseball in the clouds.”