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Executive summary: Australasia's media landscape is undergoing significant shifts with a major acquisition, while digital content monetisation continues to favour ad-supported streaming. Consumer behaviour is evolving rapidly, with a majority of Australians now leveraging AI for shopping decisions. Furthermore, marketers face a clear commercial imperative to improve ad accessibility, as uncaptioned TV advertisements result in substantial lost reach and revenue.
The Australian media sector is seeing a significant structural shift as Paramount Skydance completed its $A160 billion acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery. The combined entity, now known as Paramount Australia & New Zealand, a Skydance Corporation, integrates Network 10 with HBO Max and Warner Bros. Discovery's pay TV channels. This move follows the ACCC clearing the acquisition in June 2026, finding no substantial lessening of competition. The expanded company aims to leverage combined talent, resources, and reach to tell stories across various genres and platforms, signalling a new era of competitive content delivery in the Australian market.
Australian shoppers are increasingly turning to artificial intelligence to guide their purchasing choices, with nearly two-thirds (62%) expecting to use AI for at least one holiday shopping task, from finding deals to product discovery. This trend is particularly prevalent among younger Australians, with 70% of 25-34-year-olds using AI occasionally when shopping, compared to 45% overall. Retailers are responding by investing in AI-generated content (51%), virtual assistants (46%), and optimising their stores for AI recommendations (45%). While 41% are comfortable with AI building their cart, only 29% trust it to make a purchase on their behalf, highlighting the critical role of trust and clear value in AI-assisted retail experiences.
Despite consumer sentiment regarding increased advertising, ad-supported streaming tiers are proving commercially successful, with Australia’s SVOD market growing by 5% to 26.6 million services by June 2025, and FAST audiences growing over 40% year-on-year to 2.3 million Australians. Data from Kantar indicates that ad-supported streaming tiers were in 30% of Australian households by Q1 2025, up from 12.5% a year prior. Furthermore, around half of new subscribers to services offering an ad tier are choosing the ad-supported option, a figure that rises to 60% for Netflix. This trend suggests a strong willingness among consumers to accept ads for a more affordable viewing experience, leading 71% of ad buyers to expect increased investment in ad-supported subscription streaming in 2026.
Australian brands are significantly underperforming in accessibility, with an estimated $200 million lost annually by failing to caption TV advertisements. This impacts 5.5 million D/deaf or hard of hearing consumers, and a broader audience where half of all Australians under 35 actively choose to watch video content with captions turned on. The current media landscape sees television programming mandated to be captioned, yet this requirement does not extend to the commercial breaks. Marketers are urged to update media plan spec sheets to include time-coded caption files as a default requirement to ensure broader reach, enhance emotional resonance, and improve campaign ROI across diverse viewing habits.
The Pure Intel Executive Briefing delivers high-signal market intelligence for leaders and decision-makers. Get across the critical macro trends and curated sector deep-dives spanning marketing technology, digital analytics, retail, and regulatory shifts. No fluff and no clutter, just the precise insights you need to stay ahead, updated daily.
Welcome to the Pure Intelligence daily executive briefing for Thursday 8 October. Here are the top macro trends from the last 24 hours. Executive summary Media consolidation reshapes local landscape Streaming ad tiers drive advertiser investment AI increasingly influences Australian consumer purchases Regional Australia fuels summer spending Urgent call for captioning in TV ads Australian media is undergoing significant consolidation with Paramount Skydance completing a major acquisition, while advertising budgets increasingly pivot towards streaming ad-supported tiers. Consumers are shifting, with AI playing a larger role in purchase decisions and regional Australia emerging as a key summer holiday and retail market. Marketers are also urged to address a substantial financial and accessibility gap by consistently captioning TV advertisements. Paramount Skydance has finalised its A$160 billion acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery, forming Paramount Australia & New Zealand, a Skydance Corporation. This merger creates a combined entity controlling Network 10, HBO Max, and Warner Bros. Discovery’s suite of pay TV channels. The ACCC cleared the acquisition, finding no substantial lessening of competition. This consolidation significantly reshapes competitive dynamics for content and advertising, requiring marketers to reassess strategies within this newly integrated media ecosystem aiming to deliver stories across all platforms. Ad-supported streaming services are rapidly gaining traction, with the SVOD market growing 5% to 26.6 million services by June 2025, and FAST audiences increasing over 40% year-on-year. This growth attracts significant advertiser interest, as 71% of ad buyers expect to increase investment in ad-supported subscription streaming in 2026. While consumer sentiment towards ads is mixed, around half of new subscribers to services offering an ad tier are choosing these cheaper plans. This shift creates opportunities for brands to appear alongside premium content, with platforms exploring new ad formats like themed takeovers to enhance viewer and brand experience. Australian shoppers are becoming more selective, yet plan to spend an average $346 over Black Friday Cyber Monday. A significant trend reveals 62% of Australians expect to use AI for holiday shopping tasks, such as finding deals or discovering products, with 70% of 25-34 year olds leading this shift. In response, retailers are actively investing in AI, with 51% developing AI-generated content and 46% implementing virtual assistants. This highlights a critical need for brands to make products easy to discover and valuable, as AI integration becomes a pivotal factor in consumer decision-making and retailer strategy. Nearly 2.5 million Australians are planning summer travel to regional areas, with Regional NSW/ACT, Queensland, and Victoria identified as top destinations. This offers a significant opportunity for brands, as 83% of travellers intend to dine locally, 55% plan to shop at local stores, and 48% will book local experiences. Despite cost-of-living pressures, 52% of regional shoppers are prepared to spend more at Christmas, with Black Friday established as the leading sales event influencing holiday purchases. Marketers must engage regional shoppers earlier, offering seamless experiences and balancing value with festive indulgence to capture this substantial consumer base. Additional market movements are updated live on the platform. That wraps up today's briefing. To read the full reports and access all source links, visit pureintel.com.au. Thank you for listening.