http://www.thewrap.com/20-least-watched-entertainment-cable-channels-2016-mtv-classic-sprout/?mode=3

Not every network can be USA or FX. Here are the least-watched basic cable nets of 2016, along with their percentage change compared with prime time viewing the previous year. (Source: Nielsen)

We have all of those channels. We do enjoy Smithsonian a great deal. I used to watch Chiller when it briefly carried Beauty and the Beast. But the others? No interest here.

Excellent link!!! Little surprised Logo is number 8. I think they have some good shows. MTV Classic, I watch too, but I didnt think it was that bad. UP, I'm surprised just based on The Gilmore Girls, I figured they'd be lower.

21 Sprout - nothing on there for me
20 MTV2 - nope
19 Discovery Family Channel - I was not aware this channel existed
18 Cooking Channel - I do occasionally watch
17 Esquire Network - nothing on this channel for me
16 RFD - years ago they had Dukes of Hazzard
15 FX Movie Channel - never watched it
14 UP - - never watched it
13 Discovery En Espanol - no hablo espanol
12 Smithsonian Channel - I scan through their programming every week and generally find a few shows to watch
11 Great American Country - never heard of it
10 Discovery Life - which one is this? isn't it just another excuse for a bunch of insipid Honey Boo-Boo reality clones?
9 Ovation - I watch several shows on Ovation, current favorite is Murdoch Mysteries
8 Logo - Facts of Life and some classic sitcoms
7 Chiller - never watch this
6-5 (tie) Fuse / Centric - nothing on either of these for me
4-3 (tie) Baby / Cloo - ugh
2 Discovery Family - blech
1 MTV Classic - I occasionally scan through their weekly programming but rarely find anything worth watching

the next article on that site lists the top cable channels (excluding news and sports):

1 USA - what the heck are people watching here, they already cancelled all their good shows?
2 TBS - I haven't seen anything worth watching here in awhile, seems to be mostly the home for third rate movies starring Katherine Heigl, Jennifer Aniston or Sandra Bullock, I'll occasionally watch Conan depending on the guests
3 HGTV - not really my thing
4 TNT - can't think of a single thing worth watching there since they cancelled Rizzoli and Isles
5 Discovery - pure trash reality show garbage, they should just change the channel name to TRASH
6 History - I scan their programing weekly, but they have been going downhill the past couple of years
7 AMC - don't watch anything on this channel
8 FX - I used to watch Archer, can't think of anything else recently
9 Food Network - I watch a few things on here, not as much as a couple years ago though
10 Hallmark - no, just no.
11 ID - nope, nothing
12 Adult Swim - isn't this just part of Cartoon Network? I'll watch Rick and Morty, they don't have any new originals any more do they? I think it's all just reruns of their now cancelled shows
13 Lifetime - yuck
14 Bravo - I really don't even know what shows they have, never seen anything worth watching though
15 TLC - another all-trash all the time channel that needs a different name
16 A&E - complete waste of a channel, absolutely nothing on this channel that won't make you dumber just watching it.
17 Nick at Nite - so they are counting these "shared" networks? N@N at least has some good reruns
18 Freeform - I guess this used to be ABC Family? I watched Young and Hungry, I am surprised that they haven't cancelled it yet in favor of yet another uninspired teen-targeted drama
19 Spike - another BS space-filler channel
20 SyFy - "Siffy" has just gone to complete garbage, they won't even show reruns of their many past great shows
** MTV, Animal Planet and VH1 just missed the cut apparently, do watch Treehouse Masters on AP

USA Network I watch for Wrestling. TBS, I'll watch Conan once in a while, Friends once in a while and Seinfeld. Food Network is always on and I watch Hallmark even though not as much.

Many problems in effect here:

1. Varied choices is a good thing but:
2. Viewership becomes too fractured when you have this many choices competing with one another.
3. Take into account the fact that streaming is majorly eating away at traditional avenues like cable.
4. Too many niche channels.
5. Too many of those niche channels aiming at a demographic that isn't there anymore.

Take a channel like MTV Classic, for example. The people who complained about MTV being taken over by new stuff has moved past that by now, and are now too busy being adults and raising families to care about not being able to watch the first few seaons of The Real World anymore. It looks like the channel largely just shows old videos anyway, which may be great for some people, but they can also just be viewed on YouTube at any time.

So...
6. Even when a channel manages to program desirable content, it's not viewed as being of high-importance because so much of it is obtainable through other sources nowadays.