Streaming service Quickflix says the launch of rival Netflix has sparked interest in the industry and helped it attract thousands of new customers.
Quickflix began as a DVD subscription service and has been offering online TV and movie streaming since late 2011.
Its customer base stagnated between 2012 and 2014, due to falls in 2013, rapid growth in early 2014 and then another fall in the six months to December, which contributed to a $8.6 million half year loss.
The company was expected to be further tested in 2015 with the launch of Netflix Australia, Fairfax Media and Nine's Stan and Foxtel and Seven West Media's Presto.
But Quickflix added 6,447 paying customers in the three months to March, lifting its subscriber base to 140,901, and has forecast further strong demand for online streaming.
"This new environment brings with it the benefits of significant industry marketing and PR, which will increase consumer awareness and should add to overall demand," it said in a quarterly report on Monday.
But revenue remained flat at $5 million in the three months to March, as the company introduced a cheaper, streaming only offer to compete with its new rivals.
Quickflix's rivals are yet to reveal how many customers they've attracted in their first months of operating, though Nine has said it was on track to have 100,000 subscribers by mid-March following a free trial period.
Netflix aims to eventually reach three million Australian households, and it is believed up to 200,000 already access its US service.
Quickflix said its offer of new release movies for an extra fee sets it apart from its rivals, along with the popularity of DVD subscription in rural areas, where broadband is insufficient for streaming.
The company said it was also in talks with "certain industry parties" and investors about growth opportunities.
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