Australian Over-the-Top' pay-TV subscriptions take big leap, with more viewers set to sign up this Christmas, Paywizard survey shows
Paying subscribers to Over-the-Top (OTT) TV services such as Netflix and Foxtel Play jumps to 40% of Australian consumers ahead of Christmas
An additional 14% of Australians plan on taking an internet TV service for the first time in the run-up to the holiday season
But operators may struggle with post-Christmas retention as 59% of first-time subscribers intend to cancel within six months
London, UK, 13th December 2016 - Australian subscriptions for Over-the-Top (OTT) TV services such as Netflix and Foxtel Play have shown major growth since last year, with the proportion consumers subscribing to OTT surging from 26% last year to 40% in 2016, according to new research from subscription, billing and CRM specialist Paywizard. While more Australians take at least one OTT service this year than last, the figure still trails the 45% global average and subscriptions increased at a slower rate than in any of the other five bellwether markets surveyed for the study into TV viewing trends during the Christmas period.
However, the research, commissioned by Paywizard and conducted by Research Now, reveals the Australian OTT market is about to get a boost this Christmas when 46% of consumers plan to watch more TV than they usually do. The research shows 23% of all consumers plan to either sign up for an OTT subscription for the first time prior to the holiday season or add an extra service in addition to one they already have - up from 18% in 2015 but lower than the global figure of 30%.
The survey of over 6,200 consumers worldwide - including 1,037 in Australia - shows 14% of Australians intend to sign up to an OTT service for the first time this Christmas, which would bring the total proportion of subscribers to 44% (when the percentage of existing subscribers is added).
However, it's clear that many new pay-OTT subscribers in Australia are uncertain about making a long-term commitment to on-demand television providers, as the survey also found that 59% those planning to subscribe to internet TV for the first time this Christmas intend to cancel within six months - higher than the global figure of 50%.
The research also examined Australian consumers' pay-TV consumption across cable, satellite and internet TV operators. The findings reveal that in addition to Foxtel, the sole provider of satellite TV services in Australia, and global OTT giant Netflix, there is ample choice in the pay-TV marketplace with seven services registering between 3% and 12% uptake among pay-TV subscribers.
Bhavesh Vaghela, Chief Marketing Officer at Paywizard, notes: The last few years has seen Australian consumers gain access to a lot more pay-TV options and, although the market is growing slower than others we surveyed, the pace of adoption is consistent. With this competitive landscape, consumers can expect to benefit from more aggressive pricing and more general and specialist content. And providers have to find ways of building loyalty.
Mobile device adoption favours the young
The research reveals 37% of consumers intend to use a mobile device of some type for at least part of their Christmas TV viewing, while 88% intend to use a TV or smart TV. Neither figure is significantly different from 2015.
The younger the Australian consumer, the more likely they are to use a mobile device for viewing their holiday TV, with more than 50% of each demographic under age 45 doing so while just 16% of the 55-plus age group intend to go mobile this Christmas.
Local challengers still in the fight!
With 51% uptake among pay-TV subscribers, Netflix has taken Australia by storm since its launch in 2015, creating a tough playing field and emerging as the biggest pure pay-OTT player. Nonetheless, it has a strong video-on-demand competitor emerging through Foxtel, which complements its core satellite TV service with its Foxtel Play and Presto TV pay-OTT services (with the latter closing in 2017 and migrating subscribers to the Play platform). After the launch last year of Amazon Prime Instant Video and specialist reality TV channel hayu - which join existing OTT brands such as Stan and Fetch TV - it is clear Australian audiences are open to a growing range of on-demand choices.
Vaghela observes: The Australian pay-OTT market has seen strong growth for early mover Netflix but it is unclear whether subscribers will stick with this service for the long run in the face of so much competition. For example, of those planning to subscribe this Christmas, 32% named Foxtel Play as their choice and others such as Stan have built strong market share.
Australian consumers planning on taking a first OTT subscription over Christmas were asked to name the three top reasons they would to keep it: value for money came out on top at 56%; but, perhaps surprisingly, the next most popular factor - listed by at 38% - was a provider showing flexibility by allowing customers to adjust their packages as needs, wants and circumstances change.
Vaghela concludes: The big takeaway for pay-TV operators in Australia is that there is still a huge untapped market that is waiting to be unlocked - 44% of Australian households don't yet pay for TV services. This suggests that operators need to do more to meet the needs of a largely underserved audience, which means they need to find better ways of both cultivating and keeping strong subscriber relationships.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
When Canada qualified for the FIFA World Cup 2026, OneSoccer knew this wasn'...
04/07/2026
Celebrates company's 80th anniversary
Rhodes have recently revealed that they will be producing a limited run of electric pianos in celebration of their...
04/07/2026
Blackmagic Design Cameras Empower Youth Broadcasting Program
Brie Clayton July 3, 2026
0 Comments
Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 6K Pro and Blackmagi...
04/07/2026
iZotope Joins Boris FX
Boris Yamnitsky July 3, 2026
0 Comments
iZotope, the team behind RX and Ozone, is joining Boris FX. A letter from founder Boris...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
03/07/2026
New bundle & three Single Packs
Continuing to expand their already sizeable orchestral collection, VSL's latest release introduces three new Single Pack...
03/07/2026
Venue installs new ATC-equipped control room
LSO St Luke's, a unique music venue that also serves as the home of the London Symphony Orchestra, have rec...
03/07/2026
Caden Pearson appointed new Commissioning Editor for NITV
3 July, 2026
Media releases
National Indigenous Television (NITV) has strengthened its commitment...
03/07/2026
1 February 2023
SHARE Facebook Twitter Linkedin Email
Munich, Germany, 1st February 2023: Cinegy GmbH, the premier provider of software technology for digit...
03/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
03/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
03/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
03/07/2026
Death Star
Andy Marken July 2, 2026
0 Comments
Look, I can't get involved. I've got work to do. It's not that I like the Empire; I hate i...
03/07/2026
Berklee's New Visual Identity: Honoring Our History, Building for What's...
03/07/2026
Scripps Research scientists awarded $2M to advance global disease surveillance Two Gates Foundation grants will expand wastewater surveillance and AI-driven dis...
03/07/2026
Joan Pulupa joins Scripps Research faculty to study the organization of DNA in brain cells and its links to neurodegeneration Using smell-sensing neurons and ad...
02/07/2026
Entering her senior year, this hometown girl is paving a career in live sports production gaining experience in replay and audio and as a TD
In the live-sports...
02/07/2026
In-venue and creative video staffers at the professional and collegiate level ha...
02/07/2026
BLAST, a competitive entertainment company focused on esports, has announced more than $133 million in revenue for 2025, representing more than 40% year-over-ye...
02/07/2026
Riedel Communications has announced official SKAARHOJ panel support for SimplyLive production workflows, enabled through the SimplyLive 2.1 release. The integra...
02/07/2026
The Fire Rescue Service of the Czech Republic has deployed LiveU video-over-bond...
02/07/2026
Gravity Media USA has announced the appointment of Brittney Boston as Head of Business Development, effective July 1, 2026. Based in Nashville, Tennessee, Bosto...
02/07/2026
TwelveLabs, a video intelligence company, has announced $100 million in Series B funding co-led by NEA and NAVER Ventures, with participation from Amazon, Radic...
02/07/2026
The Pro Padel League (PPL) has announced a broadcast partnership with USA Sports that will air five PPL championship matches on CNBC during the 2026 season, the...
02/07/2026
LiveLike, a digital fan engagement platform, has announced eight confirmed FIFA ...
02/07/2026
Cobalt Digital has received Future's Best of Show Award, presented by AV Technology at InfoComm 2026, for its blueCORE family of standalone signal processor...
02/07/2026
Synamedia has announced the appointment of Dr. Tzvi Gerstl as Chief Executive Officer. Paul Segre, who has served as CEO for the past six years, will transition...
02/07/2026
The Esports Foundation (EF) and Sony Group Corporation have announced an expanded collaboration for the Esports World Cup 2026 (EWC), taking place in Paris, Fra...
02/07/2026
Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd. ( Z') has announced exclusive broadcast and digital rights for the Bundesliga in India for five years, beginning with the...
02/07/2026
An effort uniting News, Sports, Local, and Telemundo, the 50+-camera live produc...
02/07/2026
Zoey Deutch, John Slattery, Ken Marino, Miles Gutierrez-Riley, and Ben Wang appe...
02/07/2026
Stammering, stuttering, strangulated tones
The Crow Hill Company's latest creation promises to be the most original sound set they've produced to d...
02/07/2026
A new era in unmixing and spectral editing
The latest version of Steinberg's spectral audio-editing software has just arrived, building on the strength...
02/07/2026
Aims to simplify additive synthesis
Sine Machine is the debut launch from Melatonin, a Vienna-based developer who have spent the past six years creating wha...
02/07/2026
Products to remain fully active & supported
Following the news of Native Instruments joining the inMusic brand line-up, Academy and Emmy Award-winning visua...
02/07/2026
What you missed!
Last weekend, Saturday 27 June 2026, saw the debut of Sound On Sounds new GearExpo UK event, the largest dedicated pro-audio event to take ...
02/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
02/07/2026
Following the successful launch of its inaugural APAC Mentoring Programme last month, the Rise AV APAC Regional Council will bring the conversation around mento...
02/07/2026
Blackmagic PYXIS 6K Used to Shoot Director Takahisa Zeze's Cry Out
Brie Clayton July 2, 2026
0 Comments
Highly mobile camera supports tense and de...
02/07/2026
Broadcast Solutions acquires BFE, expanding its lead in European broadcast, medi...
02/07/2026
Berklee Alum and Faculty Perform at Boston Public Library's 250th Anniversar...
02/07/2026
Broadcast Solutions GmbH, a leading systems integrator and provider of innovative solutions for the broadcast media industry, is acquiring BFE Studio und Medien...
02/07/2026
Cinegy GmbH, the premier provider of software-defined television technology, has extended the ingest facility at leading Brazilian sports company LiveMode, work...
02/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
02/07/2026
Standalone processors acknowledged for the innovation and value they bring to Pro AV
Cobalt Digital, a leading designer and manufacturer of signal processing ...
02/07/2026
Synamedia announced today the appointment of Dr Tzvi Gerstl as Chief Executive Officer. Paul Segre, who has served as CEO for the past six years, will transitio...
Australian Over-the-Top' pay-TV subscriptions take big leap, with more viewers set to sign up this Christmas, Paywizard survey shows
