IPTV, along with other online television subscription services, are expected to be the drivers for Australia's media and entertainment industry as it grows 18 percent over the next five years, according to the annual PwC media report, says a story in The Sydney Morning Herald.
The report forecasts a compound annual growth rate of 4.1 percent, indirectly, at least, at the expense of continued declines in newspapers and magazines, the story said, adding that the report further predicts that newspapers will see circulation declines of 7.6 percent a year over the next four years and advertising revenue drop off of 5.1 percent.
According to the article, 27 percent of Australians will have switched to an IPTV subscription service by 2017, which "makes IPTV a strong market contender among the boxes vying to control content shown in Australian living rooms."
IPTV, the article said further, is expected to be an "attractive alternative" to cable and satellite-delivered services but ultimate success "will depend on what content IPTV offers. Niche content such as foreign language channels should work well in the IPTV environment," PwC media analyst David Wiadrowski said in the newspaper article.
The new business models--both IPTV and online--require time and patience to be bedded down properly," Wiadrowski said in the newspaper article.
As a side note, the report said that governmental structural and regulatory changes could also have an impact on the entire industry, especially if government bodies demand higher quotas of local content. According to the report, "some types of Australian content--drama, documentary and children's programming--would all but disappear if it were not regulated, due to the high costs of production."
Content, Wiadrowski said in the newspaper article, "cannot be taken for granted. Popular professional content that crosses platforms, aggregates viewers, prompts recommendation and lights up social media, becomes increasingly valuable."
For more:
-see this story
Related articles:
Aussie commission OKs deal between NBN Co, Singtel Optus
Google TV Australia a set-top box for Internet television