Netflix Australia vs The World: Content library comparison

Here's how the Netflix Australia content library compares to the rest of the world.

Love it or loathe it, Netflix certainly made quite a noise when it first arrived on our shores. Many have ditched their expensive Foxtel deals or inadequate alternatives to check out the awesome exclusives Netflix offers, others are outraged at the comparatively small library Netflix Australia provides. So, how is it really selling here in Australia?

Well, Netflix hasn't released any sales figures as of yet, but it is worth noting that before the Australian launch of Netflix it was suspected that around 27% of Australians used Netflix as their primary source of digital entertainment.

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How many Australians are using Netflix?

Australian consumers used a virtual private network (VPN) to circumvent the firewall stopping geo-blocked countries from accessing the Netflix bounty.

And, now that Netflix is available in Australia, iiNet has reported a 25% increase in internet traffic over the last month– keep in mind that iiNet services 1.3 million customers!

So, yeah, you could say it's been popular. Apparently Netflix through iiNet is close to taking over YouTube and Apple services, and some experts project that it will eventually make up 50% of Internet use in Australia.

How does that stack up against other countries?

Again, it's hard to say, as Netflix remains pretty tight lipped about the specifics. By the end of Q1 2015, however, it was reported that Netflix had over 60 million subscribers worldwide. It's likely that the US represent the majority of that number, as they've got anywhere between 35 million and 40 million subscribers.

The UK takes second place with close to 5 million subscribers. Conversely, the Netherlands only have around 600,000 Netflix subscribers. It will be interesting to see where Australia and New Zealand fall on this scale.

Why does Australia get only a quarter of the shows the USA does?

Hey, count yourself lucky, New Zealand get even less than us! It's understandable that Australians are angry about the lack of content, for so long now we've been promised that streaming video on demand (SVOD) services are going to turn us from a country of pirates to a country of streamers– 'no more excuses', they said.

But, it all comes down to when (if at all) Netflix acquires the rights to stream your favourite programs here in Australia. Netflix US has some of the greatest shows of recent memory, from The Walking Dead to Breaking Bad, everything you want and more is there.

But, just because Netflix is allowed to make money in the US off these TV shows, doesn't mean they're allowed to peddle the same programs over here. It might take some time, but founder Reed Hastings has stated that they're pushing hard to gain the rights to a range of popular TV shows and Movies.

And, on top of that, there's even been whispers of Netflix producing some exclusive Australian content. This is an exciting prospect, as so far, everything Netflix touches, from House of Cards to Orange is the New Black, turns to gold.