Netflix Steps Up Its Game as Disney+ Hotstar Readies for SE Asian Market

SINGAPORE, KOMPAS.com – Netflix is stepping up plans to push for more mobile-only subscription plans in Southeast Asia before Disney+ Hotstar launches in Indonesia in September.

The US streaming giant is additionally planning to expand its local content, as told by Netflix’s senior executives to Reuters.

This strategy comes just as arch-rival Disney is gearing up to have its share of the fast-growing market.

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Netflix shared with Reuters that the more than 1 million of its entire subscribers are in Southeast Asia in a market home to around 655 million people.

Currently, the company has close to 200 million global subscribers.

As such, analysts find many opportunities ripe for rapid growth.

With Disney+ Hotstar poised to arrive next month, Southeast Asia is bound to become a key battleground for streaming service companies.

"What we see in Southeast Asia is that it's a very mobile-centric market", Netflix director for product innovation Ajay Arora told Reuters in a recent interview. That's led the company to push cheaper mobile plans and adapt its product to fit lower-end smartphones, Arora said.

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