Commercial free-to-air TV in Australia generates an economic surplus of A$3.2 billion (about $2.5 billion) per year across viewers, advertisers and broadcasters, according to a new report.
The report, prepared by Venture Consulting and commissioned by Free TV Australia, examined both the economic surplus generated by the industry and the economic investment made by broadcasters.
Findings show that commercial free TV is by far the largest contributor to domestic content production in Australia and underpins the entire production sector.
Industry players spend over A$1.5 billion a year on Australian programming, increasing at 10% year-on-year and is responsible for the majority ($6 out of every $10) of spending on domestic content.
Also, free TV’s direct contribution to the Australian economy is pegged at A$2.8 billion per year through production, payroll, technology, advertising and taxation, and supporting over 15,000 jobs in broadcasting and the independent production sector.
“This report demonstrates what is at risk if we are held back by outdated rules and regulations,” said Free TV chairman Harold Mitchell. “Nearly 18 months after we switched off analogue we are still saddled with a range of outdated rules and regulations that don’t apply to anyone else.”
Mitchell said that to maintain the health of the sector, the government and parliament should act urgently “to unshackle commercial free-to-air broadcasters so we can continue to deliver these services for free to all Australians across all platforms”.