Per the latest figures released by the Australian Home Entertainment Distributors Association, Australians are consuming an increasing amount of media by legal means and at a growing rate – albeit one that still pales in comparison to the rate at which we’re sourcing content in a way that warrants the sending of Cease and Desist letters. Still! It’s progress, sort of.
Apparently, the market for digital film and television sales in the last financial year in Australia grew a notable 22.4% to $143.67 million; a figure the Sydney Morning Herald notes is a fraction of the overall home entertainment industry, worth some $973.43 million in the same period, but – ever the optimists that Australian Home Entertainment Distributors are – a growing fraction nonetheless.
Australians are frequently ranked amongst – if not at the top of – the countries with the highest rates of illegal downloads, breaking piracy records with each successive blockbuster finale or season premiere despite the concerted efforts of paid subscription models offered by services like Foxtel, who are fast-tracking returning major players like Game of Thrones (April 6th) and Mad Men (April 13th) within hours of their Stateside screening and have started offering video-on-demand services like Presto and in spite of the looming threat posed by competitively-priced streaming services like Hulu and Netflix, who are anticipated to enter the Australian market at a later date in 2014.
via SMH
Photo via “I am the captain now,” because piracy.
