Back in '95, the big wigs from Foxtel visited my ad agency to spruik the new service.
While there was lots of hubris surrounding its launch, Australians at the time were really sceptical about paying for content that was previously free. From the pollies (anti-siphoning legislation) to the advertising industry (will the audience be there and what will be its quality?) to the ordinary punter (it costs how much?), Foxtel was starting from a long way back.
It was really only when Galaxy fell over a few years later that Foxtel found its feet but it's never been an easy road for subscription TV in this country.
Anyway, I asked just one question at the presentation back in '95: after the two year moratorium on advertising had passed, would Foxtel begin showing ads?
No, came the reply. If we did that, we'd lose our competitive advantage. Hmm ...
In Australia, we're not accustomed to paying for broadcast content if we have to watch ads, too. It's a kind of double-dipping and the audience here doesn't like it.
Aussies have embraced catch-up TV, in part, because they can skip through the ads. Catch-up perfectly meets the needs of most Australians. If there is one thing we don't like, it's being pissed on and told it's raining.
As an adman, I can tell you it's getting harder and harder to reach our audiences. As a punter, I love being able to sidestep the ads!
