Advanced Television

Research: Netflix continues SVoD dominance in SE Asia

February 20, 2025

Southeast Asia’s premium VoD market continued its robust growth trajectory in 2024, with total viewership reaching 440 billion minutes, a 7 per cent year-on-year increase, according to research from Media Partners Asia (MPA), using its ampd VoD measurement platform covering five markets in Southeast Asia.

The growth was fuelled by Indonesia, the Philippines and Malaysia, offsetting a slight slowdown in Thailand. Category revenues, including subscription and advertising, surged 14 per cent to reach $1.8 billion (€1.72bn). Indonesia led the market with $552 million in revenue, followed by Thailand at ~$473 million.

“Southeast Asia’s streaming landscape is evolving rapidly,” said Vivek Couto, Executive Director of MPA. “While Netflix has solidified its leadership position, the category is growing with the entry of Max and the scaling of local and regional platforms like Vidio, Viu and TrueID. The next phase of growth will be fuelled by the expansion of connected TV (CTV) and home broadband penetration. Continued investment in local / Asian content and premium sports, led by Netflix and key local & regional platforms in Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia, will further stimulate growth. The industry is also exploring new strategies focused on short-form content and bundling partnerships to attract and retain subscribers.”

Q4 2024 was a period of significant expansion, with 3.2 million net new SVoD subscriptions added, bringing the regional total to 53.6 million in SEA, a 12 per cent Y/Y increase. Key highlights include:

  • Netflix’s continued dominance: Captured 48 per cent of Q4 net additions in SEA, fuelled by a strong content slate, including Korean, US, and local productions. Netflix has announced 14 original productions for Indonesia and Thailand in 2025. Netflix ended CY 2024 with >12 million customers combined across SEA’s five markets.
  • Max’s successful launch: Warner Bros Discovery’s Max entered the market in November 2024 and captured 26 per cent of Q4 net customer additions in SEA, driven by strong performance in Thailand. Increased engagement and subscriber growth are expected in 2025 as new originals debut (i.e. White Lotus season 3) and more WBD pay-TV customers activate the app in key markets. Max ended Q4 with >1.4 million subscribers in SEA.

Netflix leads the SEA category with a 52 per cent viewership share and 42 per cent revenue share. However, competition is growing, particularly in Indonesia and Thailand, from local players like Vidio, which led the Indonesia market with 4.7 million subscribers in 2024, and regional players like Viu which ended 2024 with 9.5 million customers in SEA. Disney+ continues to maintain a robust 10 per cent category revenue share in SEA as it has repriced and repackaged its service.

Content trends reveal a diverse landscape:

  • Korean content: Remains highly popular, driving significant viewership and acquisition, particularly Korean dramas like Queen of Tears (pictured), My Demon and Gyeongseong Creature by Netflix while Viu’s network hits and originals contributed significantly to engagement and acquisition,.
  • US content: Accounts for 20 per cent of overall premium VoD viewership, with strong performance on SVoD platforms, driven by Netflix, Disney+ and Prime Video.
  • Southeast Asian and Chinese content: Are on the rise, capturing a growing share of freemium viewership and new subscriber acquisition on SVoD. Local originals are proving successful, driven by players such as Vidio and Viu.
  • Japanese anime: Continues to perform well, particularly on SVoD platforms in Thailand.

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