Australians Clock Billions of Minutes as VOZ Data Shows Shifting Viewing Habits
Australians are spending more time glued to their screens, with new data confirming that broadcast television and BVOD (broadcaster video on demand) continue to dominate the nation’s media diet. The VOZ Total TV Viewing Report H1 2025, released by OzTAM, reveals a complex picture of how different age groups, devices and genres are shaping the way the country consumes television.
The six-month report, covering 29 December 2024 to 28 June 2025, shows that Australians watched a staggering 16 billion minutes of broadcast TV and BVOD content every week. Of that total, BVOD now makes up 2.2 billion weekly minutes, buoyed by a 41 per cent surge in live streaming compared with last year.
“This report showcases not only the strength and continued evolution of television as a platform, but also the depth of data available within our VOZ database.
For our time-stretched industry, having key trends readily accessible from a robust and credible source is central to OzTAM’s role in supporting the market, and we look forward to delivering this report each half-year,”
said OzTAM CEO Karen Halligan.
A Nation of Screen Watchers
According to the report, nearly nine in 10 Australians (87.4 per cent) watched either broadcast TV or BVOD at least once a month in the first half of 2025. Weekly reach stood at 71 per cent of the population.
Australians consumed an average of 41 hours and 38 minutes of television content each month. Almost all of this time was on the traditional TV set (40 hours and 48 minutes), while secondary devices played a minor role:
- Smartphones: 18 minutes a month
- Computers: 17 minutes a month
- Tablets: 14 minutes a month
Women watched slightly more overall (45 hours per month) compared with men (38 hours). Older audiences aged 55+ drove the highest levels of time spent, averaging nearly 90 hours a month, while younger viewers watched far less but made heavier use of BVOD.
Broadcast vs BVOD: Different Platforms, Different Stories
The report’s genre breakdown highlights sharp differences in audience behaviour:
- Broadcast TV was led by News and Current Affairs (31 per cent of minutes viewed). Light Entertainment (13.5 per cent) and Sport (10.2 per cent) also ranked highly.
- BVOD audiences overwhelmingly favoured Drama (24.4 per cent of minutes viewed), followed by Reality TV (14.5 per cent) and Children’s programming (10.6 per cent).
Other genres found mixed fortunes depending on platform. Comedy was minor across both (3.1 per cent broadcast vs 2.4 per cent BVOD), while Movies and Miniseries had more presence on broadcast (6.1 per cent) than digital (4 per cent).
When and How We Watch
Sunday remains Australia’s television night, with 44.8 per cent of the population watching broadcast TV or BVOD that day. Wednesday was the biggest day for BVOD-only audiences, accounting for 6.9 per cent reach.
Viewing behaviour also changes across the day and across devices:
- Mornings and late nights: smartphones and tablets dominate.
- Work hours: computers attract the most viewing.
- Afternoons and evenings: audiences shift back to the television set.
Prime time still accounts for the largest share of both broadcast and BVOD viewing across all screens.
Live vs On Demand
The data confirms that while Australians love the flexibility of on demand, live viewing is far from dead.
- Broadcast TV: 89.7 per cent of viewing was live.
- BVOD on TV sets: almost evenly split, with 47 per cent live and 53 per cent on demand.
- Sport: 95.4 per cent of viewing occurred live.
- Drama: 39.9 per cent of content was watched on demand, highlighting how catch-up and binge habits drive the genre’s popularity.
Demographic Shifts
BVOD has become crucial in attracting younger Australians back to free-to-air networks.
- Viewers aged 25 to 54 accounted for more than half of BVOD minutes viewed, with women driving a significant portion of this audience.
- Among 16 to 39-year-olds, more than a quarter of all viewing time was spent on BVOD.
- Exclusive BVOD viewing added almost 11 per cent extra reach weekly, rising to 19 per cent monthly reach for 16 to 39s.
By contrast, older viewers remained firmly broadcast-focused. Those aged 55 and over spent more than 82 hours a month with broadcast TV, but less than 7.5 hours with BVOD.
The Power of Big Events
Australians still turn to the big screen in times of significance. The report found:
- 9.5 million Australians tuned in to the 2025 Federal Election coverage, representing more than a third of the population. Of those, 98 per cent watched on television sets.
- Coverage of ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred in March also drove spikes in News and Current Affairs viewership.
Such events reinforce the position of broadcast television as the go-to medium for trusted, live information.
Expanding Universe
The VOZ database itself grew in line with Australia’s population. From 2024 to 2025, the Total TV universe expanded 2.4 per cent nationally, with Perth (+4.1 per cent) and Brisbane (+3.5 per cent) showing the strongest growth.
The average household now has 6.9 screens, and 97 per cent of homes still own a TV set. Importantly, 79 per cent of homes have an internet-capable television, up from just 59 per cent in 2020.
Context Within the Industry
The VOZ report covers only broadcast TV and BVOD, measured across ABC, Seven, Nine, 10, SBS, their regional affiliates and their online services. It excludes subscription and advertising-supported streaming platforms such as Netflix, Disney+, YouTube and Stan.
OzTAM now also publishes Streamscape, a separate quarterly report launched in August 2025. Unlike VOZ, Streamscape incorporates both SVOD and AVOD to give a broader picture of video consumption. Early figures from Streamscape show that while digital video services hold around 30 per cent share, broadcast TV still commands more than 60 per cent of total video viewing, with BVOD representing a growing slice at just over 8 per cent.
Looking Ahead
The findings underline the resilience of traditional free-to-air television, even as digital viewing surges. While younger demographics increasingly gravitate to BVOD, the traditional TV set continues to anchor Australian viewing. The challenge for broadcasters will be balancing the dual demands of live, mass-audience events and personalised, on-demand drama.
