Parrot Analytics SVOD platform trend reports reveal which SVOD’s digital original series are appealing most to audiences in a market during these three months, dive deeper into how this looks for the dynamic action and adventure genre and shed light on the overall size of digital original series within the entire market.

The key questions investigated in this report:

1. Are audiences in Australia demanding more linear or more digital content?
2. Which SVOD’s original series are demanded most by audiences in Australia and how is this evolving?
3. In the Action and Adventure genre, which SVOD’s original series are demanded most by audiences in Australia and how is this evolving?

Are audiences in Australia demanding more linear or digital content?

• In Australia, 16.1% of all demand expressed between June and August 2021 is for a digital original series. The majority of Australian demand, 83.9%, is expressed for a linear series.
• Compared to global audiences, Australian audiences demand linear series more. The worldwide average share for linear titles in this period is 80.6%.
• However, on a per-title basis digital originals overperform. They make up 12.3% of series in the market by number yet account for 16.1% of demand.

Which SVOD’s original series are most in-demand by audiences in Australia?

• Australia is a strong market for Apple TV+. Over June to August 2021, 9.2% of all demand expressed for digital original series was expressed for an Apple TV+ original. This is +3.7% more than Apple TV+’s global share of 5.5%.
• Disney+ series are in a similarly strong position, attracting the second largest share of Australian digital original demand with 12.1%. Globally, Disney+ originals have the third largest share with 8.1%, behind Amazon Prime Video titles.
• Although original series from Netflix account for the largest share of digital original demand in Australia, the 36.6% share here is smaller than Netflix’s 45.6% share globally for these three months.

The next chart shows how the demand shares for these five platforms have evolved over the past 12 months:

• At the start of the 12 months charted, both Apple TV+ and Disney+ held a 5.3% share of Australian digital original demand. By August 2021, Apple TV+’s share has risen to 10.0% while the share for Disney+ series grew even faster to 12.1%.
• Over the same period, Netflix’s share dropped by -10.0%, going from 45.9% in September 2020 to 35.9% in August 2021.
• The Australian share of demand for Hulu original series also declined over this period. Australia’s most demanded Hulu original for the most recent three months is The Handmaids Tale, which is the 4th most demanded digital originals series in country and ranks 12th in overall series.
• Reflecting the global trend of increased competition, the demand share for the Other category has grown by around 4% over these 12 months. Series with high Australian demand in this category include titles like HBO Max’s Mare Of Easttown and Stan’s Wolf Creek.

Which SVOD’s Action and Adventure original series are demanded most by audiences in Australia?

• When we focus on digital originals in the high-impact action and adventure genre, Disney+ leads with a 44.9% share of Australian audience attention, while Netflix series account for a 21.0% share.
• Reflecting the fact that Australia is one of the earliest markets Disney+ launched in and so has had longer to establish itself, the Australian share of 44.9% is higher than the global demand share of 35.7%.
• Although HBO Max is not one of Australia’s five largest sources of originals across all genres, the platform’s action and adventure original series are in high demand from Australian audiences. Titles like Doom Patrol and Titans perform very well in this market and as a result the HBO Max 13.7% demand share here is +2.3% higher than the platform’s global share of 11.4%.

The next chart shows how the action and adventure demand shares for these five platforms have evolved over the past 12 months:

• Over the past 12 months, the most noticeable trend in action and adventure digital originals is the rise in Australian demand share for Disney+ series. The release of high-profile Marvel series in 2021 is particularly notable: the Disney+ demand share jumps upwards after WandaVision in January, The Falcon And The Winter Soldier in March and Loki in June.
• However, Disney+'s post-Loki gain in share has been reversed in August 2021, chiefly due to an increased HBO Max share following the releases of Titans Season 3.
• Titans illustrates how impactful a single tentpole can be in this headline-grabbing genre. When Netflix’s covid-delayed hit series like The Witcher finally arrive later this year, we will see if Disney+ can maintain their current baseline of around 33% or if Australian audience attention will swing back to Netflix.

This report is intended as a high-level overview of demand for SVOD original series in this market. As originals are a key driver of subscriber acquisitions, DEMAND360 Enterprise users can compare these series with custom filters, timeframes and more in the Demand360 platform. To unlock access to these features, enquire about Enterprise subscription details here: https://www.parrotanalytics.com/contact.