what has pay TV done to Australian TV?

Stan launched with the exclusive distribution rights to the Breaking Bad spin-off Better Call Saul, the latter airing on Foxtel, and it also announced a number of output deals with US studios, as well as commissioning its first original series, No Activity.

Stan, like Netflix, was a beneficiary of being an early mover, but more competitors soon launched, with Amazon Prime Video in 2016, Disney+ and Apple TV+ in 2019 and Paramount+ in 2021 joining the streaming party.

Foxtel, in a bid to diversify and secure its future amid an exodus of customers to cheaper streamers, launched Binge in 2020, making use of its ongoing distribution rights to major shows. It also introduced Kayo, meaning sports fans would no longer have to pay for a full Foxtel subscription to watch all AFL and NRL games, alongside about 50 other sports.

Fast-forward to 2025, and the disruptors have disrupted, and internationally owned services rule the local roost. Foxtel will soon no longer be owned by News Corp and Telstra after agreeing to a deal to sell to British streamer DAZN in December, nor is it known for its costly set-top boxes.

And in the content arms race, the local players are always going to struggle against the cashed-up international giants. Few Australian programs dominate the popular conversation, with Netflix’s Squid Game and Baby Reindeer, as well as HBO’s White Lotus and Succession, all critical and popular hits.

In 2020, Stan switched its strategy to make more Australian shows, such as Bump, Black Snow and Scrublands, to combat the arrival of international players, and while it continues to be a profitable business, it is now expanding further into sports after failing to grow its subscription base significantly.

And while Binge hitched its wagon to the success of major international shows such as And Just Like That… and House of the Dragon from US studio HBO, it looks increasingly challenged with the arrival of Max, another new US streaming service in the coming months, which will likely take those shows away.

With more choice, however, comes more cost. Australians now spend an average of $63 a month on digital subscriptions and have an average of 2.1 subscription video services, according to Deloitte.

Anecdotally, most people opt for a “Netflix-plus-one” model, with about 6 million Australians subscribing to Netflix, and then usually one other, cycling through different services depending on what shows have been released.

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Recently, my partner and I were recommended The Agency on Paramount+, taking out a subscription and sticking around after trying out the Billy Bob Thornton and John Hamm-led Landman, an insight into the dirty world of the oil and gas in Texas.

This switching around places subscription services in a precarious position but puts a greater emphasis on making great stuff for us to watch more often.

As well as giving Australians access to a wide variety of shows, streaming has also changed what we see on our free-to-air networks, which have struggled to keep up with the costs of making locally made, scripted content.

For people who either can’t justify the cost of streaming or don’t want to pay, the offerings on free-to-air television have become increasingly predictable, led by reality shows, news and live sport, with limited amounts of Australian drama.

By and large, the ABC and Stan are the local media companies continuing to produce Australian scripted drama or comedy at scale,while the major commercial networks’ programming is led by the likes of Married at First Sight, Australian Survivor, The Block and Australian Idol, which continue to be popular, but certainly aren’t for everyone.

The streamers continue to produce Australian-made shows such as Heartbreak High, Boy Swallows Universe and Territory on Netflix or NCIS: Sydney on Paramount+, which prove popular with international audiences. But the planned policy by the Labor government to force them to make more Australian shows has been delayed indefinitely.

Numbers from the Australian Communications and Media Authority offer a snapshot of where Australians are watching TV in 2024.

Seven in 10 Australians said they watched streaming services in the past week, a new high according to the ACMA, while the number watching free-to-air television continued to drop, now at just 46 per cent. The number of Australians using free-to-air streaming or catch-up services such as 10Play and ABC iview stagnated in 2024, sitting at 43 per cent after several years of growth.

So, are we better off? There is no way to give a definitive answer, but 30 years on, paid streaming services have brought more choice than ever before, but has it been at the cost of local entertainment?

*Stan is owned by Nine, the publisher of this masthead.

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