Media Consumer Survey 2021
Australian digital entertainment audience preferences (tenth edition)
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The 2021 Media Consumer Survey investigates how Australian audiences across the generations are currently consuming all types of media.
Rolling lockdowns and COVID-19 restrictions have had us reaching for our remote controls, laptops, tablets, and phones as both a critical information source and a welcome distraction. Demand for subscription entertainment shows no sign of slowing, but as content fragments across multiple existing services, managing and consuming those services is becoming complex. The race is on to solve audience experience, with pay TV providers, telcos and the digital giants all having a hand in potential third-party aggregation solutions.
With fresh insights, meaningful perspectives, and vigorous conversation relevant for your organisation, the 2021 Media Consumer Survey explores the challenges and opportunities for audience and the media entertainment industry.
Key insights
There's a subscription for that (and that. And that)
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As the number of services grow, so too does the complexity for audiences. The entertainment providers that are consolidating their services into larger ecosystems will be best positioned to retain and cross-sell to audiences, but the battle will be won or lost on audience experience as aggregation takes a starring role.
Key findings include:
- 80% of our households have a paid digital entertainment subscription
- 70% of all respondents have at least one TV/movie service
- 61% of respondents want to search and discover content across all their services in one place
Read the full report to find out what this means for media and content providers.
Show me the money
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Churn is a constant challenge and advertising revenue will continue to be a critical revenue stream for both individual services and entertainment ecosystems, providing a valuable supplement to subscriptions. However, striking the right balance in the use of personal data, and targeting the right demographics on the right devices will be critical.
Key findings include:
- 27% of respondents have cancelled an entertainment subscription in the last year
- 41% of Gen Z use third-party ad blockers
- 47% of respondents say they would view advertising in exchange for a discount on their subscription
Read the full report to find out what this means for media and content providers.
News, sport and whether to pay: a deep dive
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News
News content currently holds only a small piece of the subscription pie. But a piece that should not be overlooked. There is significant potential for growth in paid news subscriptions – if we can get the right content to the right audience, and social media could play an important role in doing this.
Key findings include:
- Matures, Boomers and Gen X are switching on the TV to get their news fix (67%, 66% and 54% respectively)
- Millennials and Gen Z are scrolling social media sites (41% and 54% respectively) to stay up to date with news
- 56% of respondents say they value trusted news sources more highly than they did before the pandemic
Sport
Engagement with sport leagues, teams, and events extends far beyond video streaming and digital content, but it appears that Australia is on the cusp of a digital sporting content revolution.
Key findings include:
- 55% of respondents watch sport at least weekly
- 44% of respondents expressed they would be happy to pay for sport
- Cancellation rates for live sports providers remain relatively low, with no services returning a churn rate higher than 2% of respondents
Free-to-air TV
With free-to-air TV maintaining its long-standing dominance in people’s lives and with its expansion into broadcaster video-on-demand (BVOD), there are opportunities to leverage free-to-air BVOD services alongside paid content.
Key findings include:
- 63% of respondents rank free-to-air TV in their top three most frequent home entertainment activities
- Respondents watch an average of 8.5 hours of live free-to-air TV a week
- 12% of respondents watch live free-to-air on laptops and 9% using mobile phones
Read the full report to find out what this means for media and content providers.
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