Christopher Hughes
Research expert covering Australia and New Zealand
Video streaming industry in Australia - statistics & facts
The video streaming industry is big business. The Australian market is no exception – but like in other markets around the world, consumption and subscription behaviors are changing. Australians’ love affair with SVOD began in 2015 when industry leader Netflix expanded to the continent, having already entered markets in Europe, Latin America, and India. SVOD penetration in Australia is now around 90 percent, in line with trends across the Asia-Pacific region. Data also shows that 65 percent of Australian households use Netflix, the highest among all other English-speaking markets including the United States – Netflix’s leading market when it comes to subscribers. Despite these figures though, Australia’s SVOD landscape is not immune from the challenges facing the industry.
Meanwhile, in late 2023, long-standing independent film company Umbrella Entertainment launched Brollie, a new on-demand streaming service offering Australian movies and TV shows. Described as having limited ads and a variety of content not available elsewhere, Brollie aims to provide a diverse catalog ranging from cult movie classics to new interviews with directors, and also features a section for Indigenous Australia. Brollie’s unique selling point could be a hit, and the service has the potential to fulfil consumer needs which other larger providers fail to meet. AVOD will likely see strong growth as consumers tighten their purse strings and grow more accustomed to viewing with ads, whereas for SVOD services, focusing on consumer retention will be key.
Who’s who in the Australian SVOD market?
Netflix leads Australia’s SVOD market with a market share of over 30 percent based on revenue. Netflix also remains the most popular video on demand service by number of app downloads, with more than double that of its Australian competitors, 9Now and Stan. Late 2019 saw the launch of Disney+, a service which quickly made its mark. App downloads of Disney+ in Australia surpassed one million just a month after the launch, and the service now enjoys a market share second only to Netflix, at 17 percent. Looking at the future of the Australian SVOD landscape though, it could be the smaller AVOD services which see the biggest growth in years to come.Changes to consumer behavior
After streaming giant Netflix introduced measures to cut back on password sharing, subscriber churn was a predictable outcome. According to a global survey held in the second quarter of 2023, a total of eight percent of Australians planned to cancel their Netflix subscription. This was the second highest across six markets and more than double the share of UK subscribers who said the same. The streaming giant had previously avoided churn in Australia, and although a mass exodus from the platform is very unlikely, Netflix and its competitors could see their number of new signups plateau as subscribers attempt to cut costs or turn to free, ad-supported options. Indeed, a 2022 survey revealed that over 40 percent of Australians admitted that they preferred low-cost streaming with ads over paying more for an ad-free viewing experience.Meanwhile, in late 2023, long-standing independent film company Umbrella Entertainment launched Brollie, a new on-demand streaming service offering Australian movies and TV shows. Described as having limited ads and a variety of content not available elsewhere, Brollie aims to provide a diverse catalog ranging from cult movie classics to new interviews with directors, and also features a section for Indigenous Australia. Brollie’s unique selling point could be a hit, and the service has the potential to fulfil consumer needs which other larger providers fail to meet. AVOD will likely see strong growth as consumers tighten their purse strings and grow more accustomed to viewing with ads, whereas for SVOD services, focusing on consumer retention will be key.
