Overall Free to Air Access Increases for First Time in 5 Years

The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) recently released its annual How we watch and listen to content report for 2022, which tracks broadcast and online content consumption trends in Australia.

The data show that free-to-air (FTA) TV, including catch-up TV viewing in Australia, increased for the first time since data was collected in 2017.

The number of adults who reported watching any FTA TV in a given week increased from 64 per cent in 2021 to 70 per cent in June 2022. This includes 56 per cent who watched FTA TV, excluding catch-up TV, and 38 per cent for FTA catch-up TV and streaming services.

Paid subscription streaming services continued to dominate viewing preferences, despite long-term growth plateauing in 2022. In 2022, 59 per cent of adults streamed video content through a paid subscription streaming service in a given week, compared to 58 per cent in 2021. This is up from just 29 per cent in 2017. One wonders if COVID 19 lockdowns influenced this trend?

For the first time ACMA started tracking viewing of user generated and short form online videos such as Tik Tok and Instagram Reels. This format is viewed almost predominantly by 18 to 24-year-olds who spent on average 7.1 hours watching content in this format in a given week in 2022, more than any other format, including paid subscription streaming services such as Netflix.

When it came to listening habits, broadcast radio remained the most popular form of audio content with 75 per cent of Australians tuning in during a given week in 2022. Meanwhile, music streaming services continued to rise; up to 70 per cent in 2022 from 67 per cent in 2021.

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