New Zealand media consumption is settling into a more stable pattern after years of rapid growth in streaming, as cost-of-living pressures prompt audiences to become more selective about subscription services.
NZ On Air's Where Are The Audiences? 2026 research found total television, combining linear TV and New Zealand broadcast video-on-demand services, reached 63% of New Zealanders each day. That narrowly exceeded global video-sharing platforms at 62%. Linear television reached 51%, moving ahead of subscription video-on-demand, or SVOD, at 50%.
Verian surveyed 1,701 New Zealand residents aged 15 and over. Interviews were conducted online and by phone, with results weighted by age, gender, region, ethnicity and interview day to reflect the adult population.
Slower shifts
The findings suggest the major shift towards streaming seen earlier in the past decade has slowed.
Established and newer services increasingly coexist rather than replace one another. Household cost pressures are also encouraging audiences to make more deliberate choices about which subscriptions they retain.
Daily reach for global video-sharing platforms fell to 62% from 64% in 2024. Linear television rose to 51% from 47%, while SVOD declined to 50% from 56%.
Online gaming increased to 34% from 29%. Online music streaming moved in the opposite direction, falling to 44% from 49%, while broadcast radio slipped to 39% from 42%.
The longer-term data shows the scale of the earlier transformation. Linear TV daily reach fell from 74% in 2016 to 51% in 2026, while global video platforms climbed from 43% to 62%. More recent results show those trends flattening.
Viewing time
Television retained the largest share of daily viewing time.
Total TV accounted for an average 128 minutes a day across New Zealanders. Global video-sharing platforms followed at 97 minutes, with linear television at 89 minutes and SVOD at 80 minutes.
Online music streaming averaged 64 minutes, broadcast radio 54 minutes and online gaming 49 minutes.
Changes in time spent also reflected weaker subscription use. Average SVOD consumption fell nine minutes from 2024, while online music streaming declined by eight minutes. Global video-sharing platforms gained five minutes and online gaming six minutes.
Yet remaining users of several services are spending more time on them. Global video users averaged 161 minutes a day, up from 144 minutes in 2024. SVOD users averaged 170 minutes, up from 160 minutes.
Platform choices
TVNZ and YouTube had the largest daily audiences among individual providers measured.
TVNZ reached 53% of New Zealanders each day, up from 48% in 2024. YouTube, including video or music use, reached 52%, up from 47%.
Netflix followed at 36%, Facebook video at 33% and Spotify at 27%. Three reached 25% and Sky services 21%.
Netflix remained the largest SVOD service but continued to lose reach. Daily use fell to 36% from 38% in 2024 and 42% in 2023. Disney+ reached 11%, Amazon Prime 10% and Neon 6%.
Spotify recorded a similar decline. Its daily audience fell to 27% from 35% in 2024. YouTube for music reached 20%, Apple Music 4% and iHeartRadio 3%.
Local content
The research also examined attitudes towards New Zealand-produced television and music.
Almost half of respondents, 49%, said they had watched a New Zealand-made programme within the previous couple of weeks. Older audiences showed stronger preferences for news, current affairs and factual programming, while younger audiences leaned more towards comedy and other entertainment genres.
Local content retained strong cultural appeal. Eighty-one per cent said they liked seeing New Zealand faces and places in shows. Seventy-one per cent said New Zealand shows made them a little prouder to be a New Zealander, while 65% considered local shows to be as good as overseas programmes.
For music, 74% agreed New Zealand music was as good as international music. Thirty-seven per cent said they actively looked for New Zealand music, while 41% said they would listen to more if it appeared on their streaming service.
People with broader media habits were also more likely to value local content. Among respondents who had used six or more types of media activity the previous day, 78% rated New Zealand music as comparable in quality with international music and 48% said they actively sought it out.