Far from hurting the incumbent streaming platforms, Netflix’s Australian launch has spurred awareness and demand for the SVOD category, benefitting Stan and Presto.
Last week Stan experienced one of its biggest weeks for new subscriber sign-ups according to a spokeswoman.
She said the service has exceeded 100,000 sign-ups since the January 26 launch, as predicted by co-owners Nine Entertainment and Fairfax Media.
Shaun James, Director of Presto, tells IF, “Since January as we added Presto TV and more devices, Presto has seen constantly increasing growth as Aussies are becoming more familiar with what SVOD is all about.
“Last week certainly raised awareness across the board and we’re seeing an even greater number of subscribers come on board to see what great entertainment we’ve got on tap.”
The vast majority of new Presto subscribers are taking the bundle of $14.99 per month for both services.
The most popular shows on Stan include Community, Better Call Saul, Breaking Bad, Lost Girl, Dig, The Nanny and Louis Theroux documentaries. Younger viewers are watching Adventure Time, iCarly and The Lego Movie.
More than 1 million hours of content are being streamed on Stan each month and the spokeswoman said, “It’s growing every day.”
Based on reports of high internet traffic, some observers believe that Netflix, which is free for 30 days, may already have upwards of 200,000 sign-ups.
In its first two days Netflix accounted for 15% of consumer traffic on iiNet, which has nearly one million customers, a spokesman for the telco told The Sydney Morning Herald.
Netflix is getting a free ride in marketing from being integrated with Fetch TV’s second-generation set-top box plus telco Optus’s offer of a six-month subscription to broadband customers and quota-free downloads on iiNet.
Strengthening its catalogue, Netflix has signed library deals with Warner Bros. and MGM. Neither agreement had been announced but WB titles including Gravity, Inception, Man of Steel, Pacific Rim and The Vampire Diaries are already available. The MGM deal includes The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug and TV’s Vikings, both SVOD exclusives.
Netflix has also struck a library deal with Icon, expanding its relationships with independent distributors after signing Transmission, Madman, Pinnacle and Rialto.
On Monday Telstra announced customers who take up its new mobile accelerate plans for 24 months will get a free six-month sub to Presto.