Australians have long worn the crown of the world's most enthusiastic pirates of film and television content. But is that beginning to change?

The number of Australians watching pirated film and television content has dropped almost 20 per cent in the past year, according to peak home entertainment industry body.

Though Australia remained one of the hot spots for torrenting of Game of Thrones – with Brisbane ranked No.2 in the world for downloads on a per capita basis – research commissioned by the Australian Home Entertainment Distributors Association has found that just 16 per cent of Australians watched pirated content in the past month, compared to 21 per cent the same time last year.

The figures are the first released since the government's site-blocking laws came into effect, and add to the perception that the tide may be turning in the campaign against piracy.