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

Consultancy Media Partners Asia estimates that Southeast Asia video streaming service subscribers will reach 14.7 million in all by the end of 2020.

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Netflix executive Arora said his firm 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 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's WeTV, which in June bought the assets of Malaysian streaming platform Iflix.

Disney+ is currently 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.

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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 telco Telkomsel with a catalogue that will include more than 300 local movies.

Bracing for the challenge, Netflix Southeast Asia content lead Myleeta Aga told Reuters that the firm, which announced two new original Indonesian productions earlier last Thursday, places high importance on the region and will continue to ramp up local content offerings.

She said Netflix expects to start filming projects in Indonesia and Thailand soon. (Writer: Fanny Potkin | Editor: Kenneth Maxwell)

Source: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-netflix-southeastasia/netflix-tools-up-in-south-east-asia-as-disney-indonesia-launch-sets-scene-for-streaming-battle-idUSKCN25D0IB