The Economic and Social Benefits of Commercial Television in Australia Free TV Australia 2020 Everybody Gets It| Free TV Australia
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Everybody gets it The economic and social benefits of commercial television in Australia Free TV Australia 2020 Everybody gets it| Free TV Australia General use restriction This report is prepared solely for the use of Free TV. This report is not intended to and should not be relied upon by anyone else and we accept no duty of care to any other person or entity. The report has been prepared for the purpose of providing an industry census around commercial television broadcasting. You should not refer to or use our name or the advice for any other purpose. 2 Everybody gets it| Free TV Australia Key findings Economic contribution Fundamental to the screen sector think commercial television supports $2.3b economic contribution in 2019. 86% Australian culture. $4.4b additional economic benefit from think commercial television is more important advertising on commercial TV in 2019. 76% than ever. 16,300 full-time equivalent jobs supported. $1.6b spent on Australian content every year. Shared experiences and identity Universally available 95% think losing commercial television would of Australian households have an antenna to have an impact on society. 97% access TV. of Australians think commercial television 89% think commercial television is a valuable 93% should continue to be freely available to service. everyone. boost in viewership during times of Australians watch commercial television every national crisis such as bushfires and +15-20% 17m week. COVID-19. 3 Executive summary Commercial television broadcasters provide Australians Advertising on commercial television contributes to with access to a vast library of content. In almost every economic activity. Economic modelling for this report market, 18 channels are available 24/7, broadcasting estimates that, by supporting competition and news and drama, light entertainment and sport, innovation, the economy was $4.4 billion larger in 2019 including more than 100,000 hours of Australian as a result of this advertising. content. It is available readily and reliably at the push of The industry invests $1.6 billion in Australian content a button to 97% of Australians. each year. In doing so, it has supported the careers and Fresh insights from a consumer survey fielded in May growth of Australia’s creative talent. 2020 for this report found that 89% of Australians think Australian audiences continue to prefer local stories commercial television is a valuable service. 76% believe and content on commercial television. More Australians it is more important than ever. cite television (all free-to-air networks) as their most This report seeks to quantify the economic and social frequent source of news than any other medium. It’s impact of the commercial television industry in also nominated as a trusted source. Australia. It provides a snapshot to inform public The consumer survey revealed that 95% of Australians understanding of the industry. think losing commercial television would have an impact The industry’s economic contribution to GDP was on society. The top reason for this was less access to $2.3 billion in 2019. This includes both the direct value Australian entertainment, news and sport. added generated by the industry, and a ‘multiplier Commercial television brings Australians together, effect’. regardless of location. During peak times, half of all For every $1 in value added generated directly by the television viewers watch together with family or friends. industry, its purchases support another $1.20 in value With more than 3.2 million people tuning in at the same added in other industries. time for the top-rated show in 2019, commercial The commercial television industry also supports television continues to be central to Australia’s culture. around 16,300 full-time equivalent jobs, both directly (7,500 staff employed by the industry) and indirectly (8,800 supported through the supply chain). 4 Everybody gets it| Free TV Australia Introduction The survey Consumer survey Compiling statistics Free TV Australia is the This report is informed by an industry Consumer perspectives on commercial The report synthesises data from over survey, which gathered information from television are sourced from a consumer 15 sources to provide a holistic view of industry representative Free TV members for the 2019 calendar survey fielded in May 2020. The survey the industry. year. was fielded by Dynata, a global online body for commercial • Ratings and content data is collected market research firm. television broadcasters. All seven members completed the from OzTAM (metropolitan) and RegTAM (regional). survey over a three-month period. The Over 1,000 Australians participated, The Free TV members are Imparja survey collected data on the financial providing their views on commercial • Data on viewer/consumer trends is Television, the Nine Network, Prime performance of members, broadcasting, television, its features and value in sourced from Deloitte’s 2019 Media Media Group, Seven West Media, WIN, production and content. contemporary society. Consumer Survey, which collected data Southern Cross Austereo (SCA) and The data collected through the survey Fielded at the height of the COVID-19 from more than 2,000 consumers in Network 10. relates only to broadcasting, production pandemic, the results provide a unique June 2019. and distribution businesses, and perspective into audience attitudes Free TV Australia has engaged Deloitte associated overheads. This includes during the crisis. However, it should • Other data sources include the Access Economics to prepare an broadcast video on demand. be noted that consumer attitudes may Australian Bureau of Statistics, Nielsen, independent report which captures the change over time. ThinkTV, ACMA, ZenithOptimedia, economic and social contribution of its It does not include other activities which IAB, Roy Morgan, Screen Producers members to Australia. This report refers are undertaken by Free TV members, Further information on the consumer Australia, Screen Australia, IBISWorld, to these members as ‘commercial such as subscription video on demand survey is detailed in the Appendix. IMDB and previous research by television broadcasters’, and the (SVOD), print and online publishing. Deloitte Access Economics. associated ‘commercial television industry’. The statistics are supplemented by consultations with industry experts. The report draws on data from a range of sources. It is also informed by an economic contribution model, which calculates the economic contribution of the industry using an input-output framework. 5 Everybody gets it| Free TV Australia COVID-19 and the commercial television sector This report is based on research undertaken in early Despite this, the survey results demonstrate the The consumer survey fielded for this report revealed 2020, prior to the impacts of COVID-19 and the resulting continuing importance of the commercial sector. With that over three-quarters of all Australians think mandated restrictions on certain types of economic Australians seeking up-to-date, reliable information commercial television is more important than ever activity. As a result, it is a snapshot of the economic and about the crisis, audiences for news and current affairs before, despite the economic challenges facing the social impacts of the commercial television sector prior programs increased — by more than 40% on average.1 industry.5 to the crisis. Trust in news broadcast on commercial television also increased in the context of COVID-19, in particular for Even with fewer advertising dollars available, the COVID-19 significantly changed the landscape for the younger people.2 Also, the Commonwealth Government importance of commercial television as an advertising sector, as for other industries. Revenues fell as invested in a public awareness campaign, using medium has grown in 2020. Television is one of the few television advertising expenditure decreased. At the commercial television advertising, and other media, to ways for brands to reach a wide audience, with many same time, audience numbers spiked, as Australians communicate the importance of social distancing and Australians working from home and staying indoors. turned to commercial television for news and other measures. 82% of Australians think it’s important that brands information. To provide a more direct view on the continue to advertise during COVID-19.6 impacts of COVID-19, this report is supported by More generally, government policies discouraging findings from a consumer survey, fielded in May 2020. non-essential travel resulted in more Australians tuning The long-term impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on The survey provides unique insights into audience in or streaming commercial television programming in the free-to-air sector are difficult to predict. Already, attitudes during COVID-19 lockdowns. general. Audience sizes increased — at its peak, by 15% some production, sport, and economic activity is from mid-February for metro viewers and 12% for resuming, which could minimise the long-term damage. In mid-2020, the sector has been directly impacted by regional viewers.3 This reflects the percentage change in However, with economic activity likely to be subdued COVID-19 in a number of ways, including the delay of average primary viewing, comparing mid-February to through 2020, the COVID-19 crisis has the potential to major sporting fixtures such as the AFL and NRL, the April 2020. When restrictions were lifted, audience result in significant, long term impacts on the