ACMA publishes subscription video on demand Australian content data for 2020-21
The ACMA’s second subscription video demand (SVOD) Australian content report shows Amazon Prime, Disney, Netflix and Stan spent more on Australian programs in the last financial year compared to 2019–20.
Collectively, the SVOD providers spent $178.9 million on Australian programs in 2020–21, up from $153 million the previous year. These are programs that meet minimum requirements for key creative roles, including producers, directors, writers and cast being Australian.
Key changes for this report include the expenditure on the acquisition of sports programs for the first time, and an increase in expenditure in Australian drama programs compared to the previous year. Spending on Australian children’s drama and non-drama programs was down compared to 2019–20.
In 2020–21 SVOD providers also spent $450 million on acquiring, producing or investing in Australian-related programs. These are programs that meet some but not all of the criteria of an Australian program.
Australians were also able to watch more Australian content on all four services. At 30 June 2021, 2,030 Australian program titles were available to Australian audiences across these services, representing 6,019 hours of content. SVOD providers also made Australian programs available to audiences in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and many other countries.
Some findings:
Spending by subscription video on demand providers 2020–21
Four subscription video on demand (SVOD) providers – Amazon Prime, Disney, Netflix, and Stan – spent $178.9 million in the 2020–21 financial year on 1,765 Australian programs.
These are programs that meet minimum requirements for key creative roles, including producers, directors, writers and cast.
SVOD providers commissioned or co-commissioned 22 new Australian programs. These programs accounted for more than half of the expenditure on Australian programs (58% down from 80% in 2019–20). These new Australian programs included Bump (Stan), Back to the Rafters (Amazon), Surviving Summer (Netflix) and Mr Inbetween, series 3 (Disney). The remaining expenditure included the costs of acquiring 1,743 Australian programs.
SVOD providers’ expenditure on Australian programs increased more than $25 million from 2019–20. Key changes in expenditure include the acquisition of sports programs for the first time in 2020–21 and an increase in acquired and commissioned Australian drama programs. Spending on Australian children’s drama and non-drama programs was down compared to 2019–20.
SVOD providers’ contributions supported production of Australian programs across a range of genres, with all providers commissioning or acquiring Australian drama ($94.8 million) and Australian documentaries ($17.3 million).
SVOD providers also support the production of content made in Australia in ways other than commissioning or acquiring Australian programs. In 2020–21, providers spent $450 million on acquiring, producing or investing in 12 Australian-related programs. These are titles that meet some but not all of the criteria of an ‘Australian program’. Their contributions supported production of programs such as The Wilds, season 2 (Amazon), Pieces of Her (Netflix) and Nine Perfect Strangers (Disney).
Australian programs outside Australia
SVOD providers also reported the number of Australian programs made available on services outside Australia. The regions reported by providers varied:
- all providers reported on Australian programs available in Canada, Spain, UK and the US.
- 3 providers reported on programs available in France.
- 2 providers reported on programs available in Brazil, Germany, India, Italy, Japan and Mexico.
Data for countries where only one SVOD provider reported Australian programs has not been included in Table 2. This includes data for Argentina, China, Denmark, Greece, Ireland, New Zealand, Portugal, Singapore and Sweden. Some providers reported in aggregated regions (for example, Benelux and Latin America), which have also not been included.