Australians now spend as much time watching subscription TV on demand (SVOD) as they do linear, and social media consumption among Gen Z has dropped by a fifth—and there’s broad support for greater regulation of social platforms.
“‘Prime time’ as we traditionally know it could be a thing of the past,” wrote Deloitte announcing the findings of its 13th annual Media and Entertainment Consumer Insights report.
According to the report, the average Australian now spends eight hours and twenty minutes a week watching both SVOD and free-to-air (FTA) television, with media consumption peaking several times throughout the day instead of just once.
Almost 75 per cent of Australians consume some form of media first thing in the morning, while more than 80 per cent do so on the commute to work or before turning off the light at night.
But despite the persuasiveness of media consumption, Australians—particularly younger Australians—are cutting back. Overall, total weekly time spent consuming entertainment dropped by 10 per cent over the past 12 months to 44 hours a week.
For Gen Zs, consumption fell a remarkable 25 per cent, with social media usage taking a particular dive.
“Australians spend an average of 44 hours a week, or around six hours a day consuming digital entertainment. This survey gives us a great insight into what they consume and why,” said Peter Corbett, Deloitte’s lead partner for telecommunications, media and entertainment.
“Prime time means something different to everyone in 2024—streaming services are on the precipice of eclipsing traditional free-to-air television in popularity, while different formats are winning the battle for our attention at various times of the day,” Corbett said.
Cost of living pressures have hammered consumer wallets, yet Australians are resisting the temptation to cut their home entertainment budget.
This year, the average number of digital subscriptions per household remained broadly consistent at 3.3, while average monthly spend grew 10 per cent to $63 as platforms pushed through price hikes.
More than a third of consumers are exceeding their monthly entertainment budget and 75 per cent are worried about the cumulative cost of multiple subscriptions—yet most Australians intend to continue holding the same number of subscriptions in 2025 as they do now.
“It is no secret that Australians are tightening their belts at the moment, but most are avoiding taking the razor to their subscriptions, preferring to save money by switching between services to take advantage of promotions or
substituting a night out for a night in,” Corbett said.
“Despite price increases, subscriptions services still offer a relatively low-cost form of entertainment, which helps explain why young people, who often have tighter budgets, spend more on subscriptions than older people. Gen Z households spend $88 a month on subscriptions – almost double that of baby boomers.”
While social media remains a popular form of entertainment, younger Australians are scrolling less because of a lack of trust and concerns about the impact on wellbeing. For Gen Zs, average weekly use dived almost 20 per cent, from 12 hours and 45 minutes to 10 hours and 5 minutes.
Close to half of all respondents say they regularly spend more time on social media than planned, and one-third say this is of concern to them. Meanwhile, 70 per cent of those who live with children are worried about the effects of social media and half have used parental controls to limit online access.
The concern around the impact of social media on younger people has flowed through to strong support for limiting access, including among young Australians: 90 per cent of consumers are advocating for new social media restrictions for those aged 16, including 91 per cent of Gen Zs.
“The proposal for an outright ban for people under 16 accessing social media is less popular, but still found favour among 56% of respondents and, surprisingly, among around one-third of Gen Zs, who are more likely to be familiar with the adverse effects social media can have on wellbeing,” Corbett said.
Alongside wellbeing concerns, most Australians have doubts about the content they get on social media. Only 40% of respondents trust the news they consume through social platforms compared to 73 per cent of Australians who trust news consumed through major news publishers.
Younger Australians also place a premium on representation in media: 64 per cent of Gen Zs actively seek out diverse voices in what they consume, compared to 49 per cent of consumers overall.
“Despite reports to the contrary, Australians still retain considerable trust in legacy media platforms, with a strong preference for Australian-owned outlets. As ubiquitous as social media is, TV news programs are still the single most popular source of news, being the primary choice of 34 per cent of respondents,” Corbett said.
“That being said, traditional news and entertainment outlets need to stay attuned to the changing preferences of media consumers if they want to continue being seen as relevant and retain trust.”
