Australian-made children's television is in steep decline, with broadcast time down 42% and commercial networks halting new commissions, according to a new report. This trend threatens the production of future hits like Bluey, which has been the most streamed show in the US for two years straight.
Broadcast Time Crashes by 42%
Screen Australia's Screen Currency 2026 report, published Wednesday, found that average screen time for children's TV broadcasting fell to 65 hours per year between 2021 and 2024, a 42% drop from the average between 2000 and 2020. The decline is driven by shifting viewer habits and reduced commissioning by commercial networks.
Channels Seven, Nine, and Ten were once required to broadcast a minimum 260 hours of children's programs per year. However, since the government quota was dropped, these free-to-air commercial networks have "effectively stopped commissioning the genre," the report states. In 2025, first-run children's TV in Australia was predominantly made by the ABC, with limited programming from SBS/NITV and Seven.
Commercial Networks Shift Focus
The report highlights that commercial broadcasters are also eschewing Australian TV drama. Between 2020 and 2024, an average of 403 hours of Australian TV drama was broadcast annually, a 12.4% decline compared to the average between 2000 and 2019. Instead, commercial networks are spending budgets on news, current affairs, lifestyle, and sports programs.
Streaming services like Netflix, Stan, and Amazon Prime Video have become "significant investors" in Australian content, particularly drama. This is partly due to legal obligations: under Australian law, they must invest at least 10% of their total Australian program expenditure, or 7.5% of their Australian revenue, in new Australian drama, children's programs, documentary, arts, and educational content.
Audience Habits and Trust
The Screen Currency report, which surveyed more than 13,550 respondents, found that Australian audiences are increasingly led to shows by algorithms, despite reporting they do not trust them. Only 36% said they found it "easy to locate" Australian-made content. While 84% valued local content as important, the majority spent less than a third of their viewing time watching Australian-made film or television.
Netflix was the most-watched platform in Australia, with 69% of respondents using it. Channel Seven, Nine, and Network Ten were second for all age groups, with a combined 63% tuning in, followed by 56% watching YouTube.
Film Production Rises Despite Box Office Decline
While TV drama has dipped, the report found more drama feature films are being made on average per year – a 43% increase when comparing films commissioned between 2021 and 2024 to those between 2000 and 2020 – despite box office returns being "in decline over the past decade."
Overall, Screen Australia found the Australian screen and games sector is growing, contributing more than $11bn to the economy in the financial year 2023-24 and directly employing nearly 70,000 people in 2024-25.
