Optus eyes streaming dollars and data by putting all subscriptions on one platform, touts discounts, ease, cross-platform content recommendations
Clive Dickens: "We've got to go from being a telco to tech-co. Every media company has got to go from being a media company to a tech-co. So we're all trying to achieve the same thing."
Optus is making a play for a cut of Australia's soaring subscription dollars and streaming's copious data via aggregation platform SubHub, which corrals platforms like Amazon Prime, Netflix, Paramount+ into one place and gives subscribers up to 10 per cent off. Content and TV boss Clive Dickens reckons Australian households will average 10 subscriptions by 2023. But BVOD players and Stan are conspicuously absent.
What you need to know:
- Optus has revealed a new subscription aggregation platform, SubHub.
- The platform will service Optus' 10m plus customer base, bringing all their subscriptions services into one destination and offering up to 10 per cent off the bill based on the number of services they have.
- Content and TV boss Clive Dickens said the telco is eyeing the growing number of services in each household, expecting 20 per cent of Australians to have at least 10 subscriptions by 2023.
- Dickens said the launch does not signal a decline in Optus' own content investments and will act a major customer acquisition channel.
We've got a long way to grow and I expect we'll see 20 per cent of Australians with more than 10 subscriptions in a couple of years ...and we'll be the established destination to manage them all.
Subscription fatigue
In a bid to capitalise on the rising tide of subscription services, both video and lifestyle, in Australia, Optus has launched a new aggregation platform, SubHub.
The platform, available to Optus' 10m customer base, enables users to bundle their existing and new subscription services together in one place, while also managing the payment and activation of each. They get up to 10 per cent discount for using the hub.
Clive Dickens, Optus VP of Product Development - TV and Content told Mi3 the service will help solve "subscription fatigue" while anabling households to afford more subscriptions.
Optus has an undisclosed financial arrangement with services that have signed on and Dickens thinks it will become a healthy revenue stream for the telco as subscriptions continue to grow.
"The average household has roughly 5.5 subscription services each and 8per cent have more than 10, while there are 50 major services available in market," said Dickens.
"We've got a long way to grow and I expect we'll see 20 per cent of Australians with more than 10 [subscriptions] in a couple of years, while also moving from the 7th most penetrated subscription service market to the top three," he said, "and we'll be the established destination to manage them all."
Asked if the telco would need to offer a larger discount as customers added more services, Dickens said there was no plan to change the current percentage, though would "never say never".
Subhub launches with Optus Sport, Amazon Prime, sleep management app Calm and Kindle as its first platforms and has Netflix, newly launched Paramount+, Britbox and Fetch slated to join soon.
Missing from the list is Netflix's closest local rival Stan. The Nine-owned platform nabbed some of Optus Sports' football rights earlier this year.
Content behemoth Disney+ is also absent but "ongoing talks" with the provider are underway, according to Dickens.
Optus also has no intention of broadening the platform to include free services such as broadcast video on demand players like 9Now, 7Plus, 10Play and SBS OnDemand.
Dickens said research by Optus highlighted that free content wasn't the major concern, but rather the financial implications and management of multiple paid streaming services.
"There's not a real pain point around finding free content, people are pretty comfortable managing that, just look at the response Seven had for The Olympics," Dicken said.
"We're not here to be some streaming aggregator, it's about solving customer management problems – we had those discussions with the networks but ultimately decided it had to be subscription-first."
SubHub customers can also discover recommendations on new content and search for where content is featured across multiple services.
There will be the ability to surface information on how a user is interacting with SubHub and how it links back to our network usage, which could help our communications with existing customers.
"Massive acquisition tool"
While it may appear SubHub is a repositioning away from Optus' own content investments, Dickens denies any intention of pulling back on Optus Sport or future content endeavours.
He believes the Optus Sport and OS Fitness (the telco's wellbeing app) will remain a "cornerstone" of the offering, as SubHub becomes a "massive customer acquisition tool".
Dickens said consumers can expect to see considerable investment across above the line and digital channels, with the new service appearing heavily in its ongoing marketing strategy.
However, unlike its own content platforms, marketers and agencies won't have access to advertising opportunities on SubHub.
While the platform will be able to capture significant user data related to streaming service viewing, data usage and lifestyle interests, Australia's Telecommunications Act limits the brand from passing it on to external partners.
That doesn't mean Optus won't be using it to market its own products and services, while also informing users about their subscription usage.
"Of course there will be the ability to surface information on how a user is interacting with SubHub and how it links back to our network, which could help our communications with existing customers," Dickens said.
"It could help them optimise their plans based on their data usage, prompt them to one-off products such as unlimited data days and even show which platforms they are using more or less of, helping manage their finances better."
