SVOD & BVOD Gains in Australia

Between January and August of this year, Australians streamed 24 billion minutes of premium online video, 35 percent of all online content consumption, according to Media Partners Asia (MPA).

SVOD is out front in the premium content space (which excludes YouTube, TikTok, etc.), capturing 70 percent of consumption, with BVOD at 30 percent, per MPA’s Australia Online Video Consumer Insights & Analytics report.

By the end of August, Australia had 22.1 million SVOD subs, up from 19.4 million in Q3 2021. Netflix remains the market leader at a 30 percent share of subs and a whopping 50 percent share of consumption. Disney and Prime Video share second place at 17 percent of subs, but Disney+ far outweighs Amazon in consumption, taking a 16 percent share to the retail giant’s 9 percent. Stan has an 11 percent share of subs but just an 8 percent of consumption, down from 18 percent last year, MPA says, largely due to competition for first window U.S. dramas.

Vivek Couto, executive director of MPA, commented, “As the Australian SVOD market matures, platforms are increasingly focused on monetization. Netflix, Binge, Kayo and Stan have all raised prices over the past year, and lower-cost, ad-supported tiers are expected from Netflix, Disney+ and potentially Amazon as platforms look to unlock new revenue streams. Competition for first-window English dramas is high as major studios Disney and Paramount have ceased or limited licensing, placing pressure on local GE platforms Stan and Binge to secure popular dramas, while Stan and Foxtel’s Kayo continue to leverage key sports to drive ARPUs.”