Media Law Insights: Returning to Australia’s Evolving Media Landscape
After more than a decade in the UK media law sector, my return to Sydney to head up Spencer West’s expansion into Australia has given me an opportunity to reflect on the transformative changes in our media landscape. While outside Australia, I worked on transactions across Russia, Germany, France, New York, and Uganda while part of global law firm’s corporate TMT team, before joining Sky TV’s channel acquisition and joint ventures legal team, and finally at the BBC, where I held various leadership positions in legal and business affairs – supporting BBC iPlayer, BBC News, the BBC’s commercial interests and the Eurovision Song Contest in Liverpool in 2023.
The Australian Media Evolution
Returning to Australia, the most striking change I’ve observed since 2010 is the increased market and editorial plurality. When I left, the television landscape was relatively simple: one pay platform and five free-to-air services. Today, thanks to the NBN and broader internet growth, we’ve seen a dramatic expansion of over-the-top (OTT) and video on demand (VOD) services, fundamentally altering Australians’ media consumption habits.
The penetration of subscription video on demand (SVOD) services and video-based social media, particularly TikTok and Instagram Reels, has been remarkable. Global SVODs have established local offices and acquired local businesses, while homegrown success stories like Stan have defied global trends to become serious competitors. The existing free-to-air players have also adapted impressively, with innovations like live channels on ABC iView, SBS’s box sets on demand, and the launch of SBS Food through clever use of the multi-channelling capability unlocked by the transition to digital transmission.
A Highly Productive Production Sector
Australia’s production sector is thriving, despite the financial pressures affecting commissioning volumes. Our mix of financing agencies and tax incentives has proven so effective that some UK regions are beginning to emulate our policy settings. While the debate around local content quotas continues, I believe Australians generally support these requirements, even though we’re more comfortable with imported content than British audiences.
Our policy framework has fostered exceptional behind-the-camera talent, producing globally successful content that ranges from uniquely Australian shows like “Colin from Accounts” to universal content like “Clickbait” for Netflix. The success of co-productions between Stan and the BBC has also been particularly encouraging, bringing UK/Australian stories to both audiences.
Challenges in Modern Journalism
The journalism sector faces significant challenges as traditional economic models struggle while the importance of quality journalism grows. However, there are encouraging signs in how international publishers have adapted. The New York Times’ subscription model, particularly its successful content bundling strategy, and The Guardian’s online-first approach with donation-based funding demonstrate innovative and viable paths forward.
The next major challenge will likely centre on how news publishers can monetise their archive content that has been ingested by AI large language models. As commercial lawyers, we’ve been drafting to address this risk since the late 2010s, but resolution may depend on pending US and Canadian court cases regarding the extent of copying. The recent rise of DeepSeek out of China and the Trump administration’s support for US-based AI further complicates this space.
Looking Ahead: Short-term and Long-term Perspectives
In the immediate future, the new prominence regime for VOD services on connected TVs presents interesting challenges for Australia as a net content importer. As tech giants gain market share, we must reconsider traditional debates about funding models and content origin through the lens of audience experience. The key question is: How will audiences find the content they want most easily? This is what informs the commercial and editorial motivations informing the actions of the various market actors. Viewing is what drives advertising revenue, public service benefit and subscription fees – and all of these flow through to the local production sector. If viewers can’t find the content they expect, they’ll switch off and turn to other forms of media, like short form video and gaming.
This includes addressing challenges like returning results for voice search, managing cross-platform content availability, promoting local content (particularly local impartial news) and ensuring audiences can find both the content they want and need. These considerations must be integrated into carriage agreements early, as new technologies and economic models will launch regardless of the regulatory landscape.
Looking further ahead, we’re entering a new phase of convergence. While technological convergence (phones becoming TVs, etc.) has largely run its course, content production must now adapt to cross-media opportunities. This includes visualising podcasts, creating companion content for major TV programs, and considering multi-format adaptations at the commissioning stage.
For media lawyers, these changes require us to think proactively about service and content evolution to effectively influence policy development and advise clients on long-term commercial deals. The real art lies in drawing appropriate drafting lines to ensure contracts continue to reflect the intended value allocation between parties over time.
Overall, it’s an exciting time for the Australian media industry as it evolves to reflect market, technological and regulatory forces both from within and abroad.
To read more about Andrew’s return to Australia and his insights on the evolving media market, read his interview in the Communications Law Bulletin here.
