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Light entertainment tops expenditure for commercial networks

Light Entertainment -including Reality- spend is up, but Adult Drama and Childrens is down.

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The Australian Communications and Media Authority has released its report on Commercial TV Program Expenditure for 2021-22.

Free To Air commercial broadcasters spent more than $1.5bn on Australian content in FY22, a $20m increase on the previous year.

Total expenditure: $1.937b ($1.784b 2020-21)
Australian content: $1.541b ($1.524b)
Overseas content: $396.68m ($259.99m)

Around 80 percent of total content expenditure is on Australian programming.

Commercial television broadcasters show an average of 73% Australian content on their main channels, significantly exceeding their 55% quota obligation.

Australian Light Entertainment – Other topped the genres in expenditure at $546.46m. Under ACMA definitions this includes Reality shows (competition style), Game shows, Talk shows, Travel shows (non-doco). Note that Light Entertainment- Variety was tallied separately.

Light Entertainment – Other

Australian Sport was second top genre at $545.00m.

Australian Sport

Australian Drama has fallen to just over $65m. Three years earlier it was over $95m.

Adult Drama

Children’s Drama was similarly down, at just over $2m, down from $11.66m in 2018.

Children’s Drama

 

But there were lifts in Australian News & Current Affairs, lifting from a low of $315m in 2020 to $360.88m and Documentaries (including doco style Reality) from $8.36m to $14.89m.

Overseas – Other (non drama) genres which has more than doubled from $57m a year earlier to $168.27m.

Free TV Australia:

Free TV CEO, Bridget Fair said, “Commercial television broadcasters are proudly Australian, and continue to be the single biggest provider of Australian content in both hours and dollars. No other platform comes close to the level of commitment we see from Free TV broadcasters. It is positive to see this investment increasing year-on-year, ensuring that every Australian can continue to access the trusted local news, Australian drama and entertainment programming and live and free sport at no cost, no matter where they live or how much they earn. In these times of cost-of-living pressures and social media misinformation, our universal, free service has never been more important.”

4 Responses

  1. The drama figure is very low but also notable is how few hours are produced for that sum. The cost per hour of drama has risen dramatically which is another factor in what we do get being modest in scope, in episode numbers and ambition.

  2. Not surprised with the FTA has spent on reality shows.

    But with so little spent on Drama (and Children’s Drama), you then wonder why no one is watching Drama on FTA these days….

    1. People switched to watching watching drama on Foxel, Netflix, Disney and Amazon a long ago. Kid’s TV viewing including dramas is mostly on ABC2, ABC3, Netflix and the BBC, as many parent’s no longer let their kids sit in front of ads on commercial TV for hours. People watch News and competition shows on commercial TV, mostly dating shows at the moment, though Masterchef is still doing well. The Government recognised that and gave up trying to dictate what people watch through quotas. The decline in sport is due to an increase in streaming and cable sport coverage. The networks are making nearly 50% more local content than the minimum, or the kind that people want to watch and makes them money. The Summit, Blow-Up and The Real Loveboat demonstrate this can be tricky.

      1. New govt is very supportive of drama and Australian storytelling. Previous govt did a bit of kowtowing to media bosses ahead of elections, who wanted to reduce drama, and kids in particular, using the pandemic as a timing trigger. It will be up to the new govt to find a way forward from where it was left however.

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