MORE ACCESSIBLE ENTERTAINMENT CREATES NATION OF BINGE-VIEWERS

Aussies watch more movies from home than ever before.

Optus research shows that with a third of Australians now watching at least 10 movies a month from the comfort of home, a night at the cinema has become a special treat.

Almost 30 per cent of Australians watch more films at home now than they did three years ago and for over half of these people, access to more devices, viewing platforms and great content are driving the decision to stay home.

Sue Bailey, Vice President of Fixed Products at Optus said, “The rise of the home cinema comes from the growing range of great internet-based entertainment content, combined with the choice and flexibility to watch it on our own terms.

“The internet has opened up a world of entertainment, allowing more people to access the latest blockbusters and cult TV series from the comfort of their own home. Australians who rely on the internet for movies and TV, want the assurance of a broadband plan that allows them the freedom to watch entertainment on demand. Thanks to Optus’ unlimited data bundles, customers can feed their movie appetite without exceeding a monthly data allowance,” Ms Bailey said.

Aussies splurge on recreating the cinema experience in their living rooms

The main reasons Australians prefer to watch movies from home are the cost of the cinema (58 per cent), the variety and volume of content on offer from home (54 per cent) and the convenience factor (51 per cent).

Rather than losing the cinema experience, Australians are going to great lengths to recreate the best bits of a trip to the movies. Almost two thirds (64 per cent) of those surveyed spent up to $5,000 on technology for their ‘home cinema’ with one in five Gen X’s spending even more.

Rise of the home cinema:

• Australians watch an average of almost eight (7.9) movies a month with Gen Y the most prolific viewers amongst us
• Over a third of Gen Y (36 per cent) said they are watching more films from home than they did three years ago
• Saturday is the most popular in-home movie night, according to Fetch TV analysis, with Tuesday being the least popular
• Fetch TV data shows Frozen was the most popular movie watched at home last year, closely followed by Lucy and The Other Women
• One third (33 per cent) of Australians are already using entertainment platforms like iTunes, Netflix and Fetch TV or are planning to do so in the next three months

A nation of binge-viewers

In addition to watching more movies, Australians’ love affair with TV continues. Thirty-two per cent of Australians admit to being binge-viewers – watching two or more episodes of a TV show back-to-back. A further 38 per cent said that although they only watch one episode a week, they would watch more if they could.

“Subscription television, streaming and catch-up TV have changed the way we consume entertainment. Today we watch what we want, when we want it, underpinned by the confidence of broadband plans with unlimited data,” Ms Bailey said.

Media contacts:

Gabrielle Crittenden

Optus Corporate Affairs

(02) 8082 7850

media@optus.com.au

Notes to editors:

Research was conducted by ACA Research in March 2015. It was an online survey of over 1,000 people, representative of the broader population.

Fetch TV data is based on Fetch TV subscriber viewing habits between 1 January 2014 and 31 December 2014.