It wasn’t just the move of The Block to rural Gisborne that sealed its Sunday success, but also the viewers who watched on ‘catch-up’.

New figures from Australia’s ThinkTV show the contribution of broadcast video on demand (BVOD) to a total TV advertising market that rose 11 per cent to $4.3 billion for the 12 months to the end of June. The figures include metropolitan and regional free-to-air, subscription TV and BVOD, excluding SBS. For the June half, revenue was $2 billion, up seven per cent compared to the same period of 2021.

The spend on the 7Plus, 9Now, 10 Play, Foxtel Go, Foxtel Now and Kayo BVOD platforms was up 44 per cent to $208 million for the six months, with the full year total at $426 million, up 53 per cent year-on-year.

The Block launch on Nine last Sunday topped figures with 867,000 metro viewers, although Seven won the night and the ratings week. Moving the location to a regional area – contestants will renovate a house on a bush block – may have contributed to its 27 per cent year-on-year growth.