Much has been made of consumers ditching their cable, satellite or IPTV (News - Alert) in favor of cheaper online video options, and it turns out that generally, they’re pretty happy with their decision when they do—even if it means missing major sporting events.

More than a third (37 percent) of U.S. broadband consumers that have cut the cord said they are so happy they will never go back to pay-TV, according to new research from nScreenMedia.

The report also found that 84 percent said they are at least somewhat happy with their decision.

"A growing group of broadband consumers are finding that life without pay-TV is not only plausible, but also pleasurable," said Colin Dixon (News - Alert), founder and chief analyst of nScreenMedia. "However, the digital video transition isn't just affecting this select group. With more people watching YouTube (News - Alert) than TV, it's touching just about everyone."

The study found cord-cutting to be a real phenomenon too: 17 percent of U.S. broadband consumers surveyed said they had pay-TV, but no longer have it. Only a few are so-called cord-nevers: 10 percent said that they have never subscribed to pay-TV.

Obviously, this is not good news for pay-TV service providers, and finding a way to appeal to this growing group of defectors will be challenging.

"The research shows the consumer media experience is in transition,” said nScreen CEO, Keith Valory. “Traditionally, it has been dictated by the screen a viewer happened to be in front of, but increasingly the user is in control of what she wants to watch or listen to, no matter where she may be."

While 31 percent of the cord cutters said they missed TV shows they couldn't find anywhere else, just 9 percent of survey respondents said they missed sports channels. Sports is often cited as the main reason people stay with pay-TV. Worse still, 30 percent were adamant that they missed absolutely nothing pay-TV offers.