Southeast Asia’s premium video-on-demand (VOD) market continued its robust growth trajectory in 2024, with total viewership reaching 440 billion minutes, a 7 percent year-on-year increase, according to the latest research from Singapore-based market research firm Media Partners Asia (MPA), using its ampd VOD measurement platform covering five markets in Southeast Asia (SEA).

The growth was fuelled by Indonesia, the Philippines and Malaysia, offsetting a slight slowdown in Thailand. Category revenues, including subscription and advertising, surged 14 percent to reach US$1.8 billion. Indonesia led the market with US$552 million in revenue, followed by Thailand at US$473 million, MPA said in a media statement.

“Southeast Asia’s streaming landscape is evolving rapidly,” said Vivek Couto, Executive Director of MPA, in a statement, adding, “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 percent Y/Y increase.

Key highlights include the following:

# Netflix’s continued dominance: Captured 48 percent 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 percent 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 (‘White Lotus’ S3) 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 percent viewership share and 42 percent 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 percent category revenue share in SEA as it has repriced and repackaged its service.

Content trends reveal a diverse landscape and the highlights are:

Korean content: Remains highly popular, driving significant viewership and acquisition, particularly Korean dramas like ‘Queen of Tears’, ‘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 percent of overall premium VOD viewership, with strong performance on SVOD platforms, driven by Netflix, Disney+ and Prime Video.

Southeast Asian & Chinese content: They 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.