Since past several years, traditional television has been facing several threats, but now it appears as if the digital revolution is gaining momentum and the time will come when it will completely devastate the television industry that has been lucrative for years.

The traditional industry has been built around cable and satellite TV offering high-priced 'bundles' to consumers, and sharing revenue with the operators of cable and broadcast channels.

But today's viewers have a variety of choices through the internet. They can now subscribe to Netflix, Hulu or Amazon video, pick and choose subscriptions to individual channels like HBO or Showtime, or get easy packages of channels through new service providers.

It has been seen that some viewers even watch free programmes streamed over YouTube or other websites. But the industry is facing the biggest threat from 'cord cutting', which has been modest until now, but if it accelerates, it could unravel the model which has worked for the industry for years.

Wall Street investors appeared to be panicking over the future of the industry. Brian Wieser, analyst at Pivotal Research Group, said, "Investors are reacting to a growing sense of risk. The negative perspective is suggesting that the whole bundle, the whole business model is falling apart".

While Neil Macker at the research firm Morningstar said in a statement that it is not the time to panic.

Viacom has long been considered one of the most exposed to risks around the future of the cable bundle, said BMO Capital Markets analyst Daniel Salmon in a research note.