Global Streamers Seeking Price Increases as Asia-Pacific Market Grows and Matures

As a seasoned critic who’s witnessed the evolution of the media landscape over the past few decades, I can’t help but feel a sense of awe and a tinge of concern when I look at the current state of the streaming industry in the Asia-Pacific region.


Global streaming services, with their growing market influence, are hiking up prices and boosting profits in the Asia-Pacific area. While numerous local rivals hold a substantial portion of the revenue, they generally trail behind the international heavyweights when it comes to profit margins.

On Wednesday during the early hours of the APOS conference in Indonesia, Vivek Couto, a partner at Media Partners Asia, conveyed one of the most striking messages from his opening speech.

Streaming services like Netflix, Disney, and Warner are focusing on different strategies for monetization, according to Couto. While Netflix initially operated as a direct-to-consumer business but is now looking towards partnerships for its growth phase, Disney is moving more in the direction of self-reliance with their D2C offerings. On the other hand, Warner, through MAX, aims to find a balance between partnering and self-reliance across various markets. For instance, MAX, which combines content from Warner, HBO, and Discovery, is set to launch in Asia starting from Wednesday.

Increasing prices are becoming common across various platforms. Simultaneously, there’s a rise in advertising on streaming services like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Tving, and YouTube. They’re intensifying their ad content, blocking ad-blockers, and even raising the cost of YouTube Premium subscriptions. The aim seems to be shifting towards annual subscription plans, as stated.

Disney is transitioning to the second phase of its business strategy, moving away from discounted partnership pricing and aligning more closely with Netflix’s pricing model, as Couto elaborated. “Just as markets change, so do the products they offer.

On a particular slide, Couto presented that the four major players in the entertainment-tech industry, namely Amazon, Meta (Facebook), Netflix, and YouTube, are projected to generate approximately $21.6 billion from video revenue in the Asia Pacific region this year. This figure is slightly over twice the combined $9.6 billion in video revenue earned by Disney/Viacom18, CJ ENM, U-Next, PCCW, Foxtel, NC, Asto, and Indonesia’s SCMA.

In other words, when it comes to global earnings, the big four significantly outperform their local counterparts, raking in a massive $240 billion as opposed to the local leaders’ $1.5 billion. This means they are about 150 times stronger financially.

As a cinephile, I’d like to share some intriguing insights I recently came across. In the realm of entertainment, technology has significantly “reshaped” the terrain. According to this perspective, Amazon is projected to be the globe’s top entertainment titan by 2024, with an estimated annual revenue of a staggering $583 billion. This surpasses Google, which owns YouTube, with a forecasted revenue of $333 billion for the same year. Interestingly, Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Whatsapp, and Instagram, is expected to trail closely behind with revenues projected at approximately $150 billion. It’s fascinating to see how the digital landscape continues to evolve!

As a film enthusiast, it’s fascinating to note that Meta isn’t too far behind from Bytedance, the powerhouse company responsible for TikTok and Douyin. In fact, Bytedance has managed to outperform Disney, Hollywood’s long-standing entertainment titan, with a staggering revenue of $92 billion. China’s Tencent isn’t far behind either, boasting nearly an equal figure at $91 billion. Netflix, another significant player in the field, is projected to generate around $39 billion this year. It’s a testament to the dynamic evolution of the entertainment industry!

Global Streamers Seeking Price Increases as Asia-Pacific Market Grows and Matures

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2024-09-25 07:46