Paul Muller,chief executive of the Australia New Zealand Screen Association (ANZSA),which represents Netflix,said it shows that the streaming platforms are putting quality Australian content at the core of their offering,and warned this could suffer with heavy-handed local content regulation.
“Streaming services are making fantastic local shows,and being successful with that in Australia and around the world,” Muller said.
“Heartbreak High is actually an example of something that is Australian as it can be,based on an Australian IP (Intellectual property). Every writer,every actor in it,everyone is Australian.”
ANZSA is releasing a report on streaming by Frontier Economics on Monday highlighting the sector’s contribution to the local economy,and Australian content,but also warns of the potential unintended consequences of a badly designed local content policy.
The report found that there is strong demand for Australian content which drives investment.
“As a country’s VOD (video on demand) service subscriber base grows,so do the incentives to produce local content,” the report said.
But it also showed that some policies implemented in other countries led to reduced investment in local content.