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71% use paid streaming service

Online video and use of smart devices is exploding in popularity, says a new report.

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Streaming is booming in Australia.

71% of Australians with a TV set in the home used at least one paid video streaming service in 2019, according to a new report from the Australian Communications and Media Authority.

One in 10 Australians had four or more subscription services in the home in 2019, up from just 4% in 2017. Overall 83% of Australian internet users reported viewing either paid or unpaid video content online in the past six months.

In the three months to 30 June 2019, Australians downloaded a total of almost six million terabytes of data, enough to watch around 2.2 billion hours of high-definition video. Of that data, more than 88% was downloaded through fixed internet services.

ACMA Chair Nerida O’Loughlin said “Australians are using their fixed internet connections for data-hungry applications such as video streaming and are spending more time watching content online.

“Online video and use of smart devices is exploding in popularity as high-speed networks are creating markets for new, innovative services across the Australian economy.

“It’s clear that Australians have embraced technology which is helping drive demand for faster internet.”

8 Responses

  1. Doesn’t surprise me, this Christmas I bought my 80 year old Mother a tablet and set it up with a few apps on and a subscription to the Curiosity Stream and showed her what to do with YouTube as a lot of older Movies that she likes are out of copyright and on there. Went down last weekend to see them and asked how she was going with it all, said she hardly watches TV any more and mirrorcasting was a breeze, when I looked at the YouTube account I set-up in her name there were something like 500 movies in here favourites and a dozen or so subscriptions (shows like The Littlest Hobo and etc).

  2. I don’t have a single subscription to any streaming services and I’ve never had Foxtel, Austar etc. FTA is my sole source of visual entertainment and I don’t feel like I’m missing out.

  3. Look no further than the FTA program guide to understand the success of Netflix (only really serious alternative, along with the lesser Stan).
    Also how funny are the obscene amounts paid for sports rights? Cricket comes to mind: a spectacular fail financially. Looking at the ridiculous amount paid for cricket and even AFL, how many hours of outstanding drama could that have paid for? We’re talking a pile of money here so that’s a huge amount of drama hours… That’s why so many subscribe to Netflix – a want of scripted drama with strong plotlines.
    So FTA, stop patting yourselves on the back for winning embarrassingly low ratings by serving up cheap crap, or die like the dodo.

  5. After the arrival of Netflix in Australia it was only a matter of time before the global streaming boom began. When the multi billion dollar funding available for new streaming content was announced linear TV channels saw their own commercial future counting down.
    The real game changer was streaming HD and 4K content and the end to yearly pay TV contracts, replaced by reasonable monthly subscription rates that can be cancelled at any time, from that moment the commercial future of cable and satellite TV also began counting down, forcing a tech restructure for Foxtel.
    For the future the multi-national companies will make it tough for Stan and what the future for Foxtel will be is anyone’s guess.

    1. Because of limited space I didn’t add that the future for streaming could be challenged at some point too, companies who over finance their infrastructure and production will be vulnerable to economic downturns resulting in lower share prices, a new GFC could create opportunities for mergers by mega companies like Disney. The streaming bubble may burst.

  6. We have 7 in our household of 3 adults and one teenager through the course of the year based on seasons and what is on (NBA, MLB, Hulu, Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney +, CBS All Access, Apple + (free with a new phone for 12 months – unlikely to keep paying)) + Apple Music + a Foxtel package of Basic, HD, Entertainment Plus and Sport for just over half retail price and still pay less than we were paying for Foxtel Platinum with 3 boxes 2 and a half years ago. How good is competition and VPN’s and Internet delivery.

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