MELBOURNE, 4 November, 2025: The Anthony Albanese government has announced plans (to be introduced this week) of long-awaited legislation to apply local content rules to streaming platforms. The Screen Producers Australia (SPA) has welcomed the move saying, “This is an enormously significant moment for the Australian screen industry, one that many, including SPA, have been actively working towards for more than a decade.”
Reports indicate streaming services with over 1 million Australian subscribers will have to invest at least 10% of their total expenditure in Australia or 7.5% of their Australian revenue into producing new Australian content. This includes drama, children’s shows, documentaries, arts, and educational programming.
A media statement says, ” SPA congratulates Ministers Tony Burke and Anika Wells and the Albanese Government on this critical action that reflects years of deep engagement across multiple parliaments and hundreds of parliamentarians with the screen industry.”
“SPA acknowledges that this legislation will not solve every issue facing the industry, but it represents a vital and long-overdue step toward rebuilding confidence and creating a more sustainable future for Australian screen production.”
“Local content rules, or “quotas”, are the foundation of Australia’s screen industry. As a relatively small English-speaking nation, without these protections Australian stories would struggle to be made, and Australian audiences would struggle to see and hear their own voices reflected on screen.”
According to a Reuters report: ” While the government has mandated these percentage targets, detailed calculation methods have yet to be fully clarified, but the binding minimum is clear: 10% expenditure or 7.5% revenue spent on Australian content. This new regulation is expected to be introduced to Parliament imminently, marking a significant shift in Australia’s media landscape to preserve and promote local storytelling in the digital streaming era.”
ABC and other news sources say the streaming services in Australia that meet the one million-subscriber threshold and will be subject to the local content law include:
-
Netflix, with approximately 6.9 million subscribers
-
Disney+, with around 3.7 million subscribers
-
Amazon Prime Video, with about 3.5 million subscribers
-
Paramount+ with roughly 2.7 million subscribers
-
Stan, with about 2.6 million subscribers
-
Binge, with approximately 1.55 million subscribers
-
Kayo Sports, with around 1.4 million subscribers
Reaction from streaming services is awaited.
