US streaming giant Netflix Inc is ramping up its mobile-only subscription plans in Southeast Asia and expanding local content, senior executives said, just as archrival Walt Disney Co arrives in the fast-growing market.
The world’s biggest video streaming platform by paid customers, Netflix said that more than 1 million of its nearly 200 million subscribers are in Southeast Asia, home to about 655 million people.
The market is ripe for rapid growth, analysts say, with the Disney+ Hotstar launch in Indonesia next month set to become a key battleground.
Photo: Reuters
“What we see in Southeast Asia is that it is a very mobile-centric market,” Netflix director for product innovation Ajay Arora said.
That has led the company to push cheaper mobile plans and adapt its product to fit lower-end smartphones, Arora said.
Southeast Asia is estimated to have generated US$600 million in overall subscription music and video revenue last year, according to a study by Google, Temasek Holdings Pte and Bain & Co — but that is set to explode to an annual US$3 billion by 2025, the study said.
Starting with India in August last year, Netflix has launched mobile-only plans in Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines and Indonesia — all priced at below US$5 a month. That is a departure for Netflix, which has held firm on pricing in Western markets.
Repeated COVID-19 lockdowns across Southeast Asia have also increased the appetite for content streaming at home across the region.
A Netflix spokeswoman said that the firm “has well over 1 million subscribers in multiple Southeast Asian countries,” but declined to provide details.
Hong Kong-based consultancy Media Partners Asia estimates that Southeast Asia video streaming service subscribers would reach 14.7 million by the end of this year.
Arora said Netflix is also working to expand its payment options in countries with low credit and debit card penetration.
In markets like the Philippines, subscribers can pay for Netflix through their mobile telephone plans, or by purchasing prepaid Netflix cards at convenience stores.
The company faces competition in the region, and not just from Disney+, a distant, but ambitious, global No. 2 in the industry. Other regional rivals include Hong Kong video service Viu, popular for its Korean dramas, as well as Chinese tech giant Tencent Holdings Ltd’s (騰訊) WeTV, which in June bought the assets of Malaysian streaming platform Iflix.
Disney+ is in the middle of a hiring spree across the region and is expected to launch broadly in the coming months jointly with its Indian streaming platform Hotstar. Disney’s family and superhero movies have proven consistent hits in Southeast Asia.
In Indonesia, the world’s fourth most populous country with 270 million people, Disney+ said last week it would start operating in September in partnership with state-owned PT Telkomsel with a catalog that would include more than 300 local movies.
Bracing for the challenge, Netflix Southeast Asia content lead Myleeta Aga said that the firm, which announced two new original Indonesian productions on Thursday last week, places high importance on the region and would continue to ramp up local content offerings.
She said that Netflix expects to start filming projects in Indonesia and Thailand soon.
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