Is traditional broadcast television still the dominant force in home entertainment?

Yes, broadcast TV remains the primary video source, accounting for 61.5% of all in-home viewing in the first quarter of 2025. When combined with BVOD, the total Free-to-air (FTA) share reaches nearly 70%, maintaining a significant lead over all digital streaming competitors.

How do global streaming giants like Netflix and YouTube actually compare to local TV?

Netflix is the SVOD leader but captures only a 9.3% share of in-home viewing, while YouTube holds 7.7%. These figures are substantially lower than the 61.5% share held by traditional broadcast television, indicating that local platforms still command the majority of audience attention.

Why is there such a large discrepancy between this data and previous government reports?

Previous ACMA surveys relied on self-reported data which claimed FTA viewing was as low as 39%, whereas audited meter data confirms the actual figure is closer to 70%. This 31-point gap highlights the risk of using subjective surveys to drive media policy and investment decisions.

Is the growth of Broadcaster VOD (BVOD) enough to offset traditional viewing declines?

BVOD currently represents 8.4% of total in-home video viewing, acting as a critical digital extension for local networks. While significant, this audited share is far lower than the 31% claimed by some government surveys, suggesting a more measured transition to digital consumption than previously assumed.

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OzTAM Streamscape corrects narrative of FTA TV decline

New OzTAM Streamscape data shows FTA TV accounts for 70% of in-home viewing, challenging previous reports of rapid decline.

David Kennedy · Venture Insights3 July 2025Period: 1Q20254 min read

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Share of total in-home TV viewing held by Free-to-air (FTA) TV

61.5%→

Share of in-home video viewing from Broadcast TV in 1Q2025

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Abstract

Last week, OzTAM published its first official data from its Streamscape product. Streamscape combines streaming viewing data from OzTAM’s Streaming TV Meters (STVMs) with existing broadcast TV and BVOD data. This allows OzTAM to provide a more comprehensive picture of viewing on the in-home TV screen. The report does not include pay TV. The data published last week shows that Free-to-air (FTA) TV remains the leading kind of video watching on in-home TV sets, accounting for just under 70% of total viewing. This is a corrective to some surveys (some of them Government surveys) that claim that FTA TV viewing is much lower. Such data is misleading and could distort the media policy development process.

Key Takeaways

OzTAM's new Streamscape product provides a consolidated view of total video consumption on in-home TVs, including broadcast, BVOD, and streaming.
Initial 1Q2025 data shows FTA TV (Broadcast + BVOD) remains the dominant platform, accounting for nearly 70% of total viewing.
The data serves as a corrective to government surveys, such as ACMA's, which claimed FTA TV viewing was as low as 39%.

What's Inside

Streamscape provides holistic picture of in-home viewing

Findings

Why does this matter?

1 figure& data tables inside

Charts, tables, and data visualisations

Abstract

Key Takeaways

What's Inside

Streamscape provides holistic picture of in-home viewing

Why does this matter?

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