The transition from television to online video is gaining speed across Asia. Over the next five years, online video revenues in the region will grow from $64 billion in 2024 to $89 billion by 2029 — a 40 percent uptick. Traditional TV revenue, meanwhile, will contract by $8 billion over the same period, according to a new report from consultancy Media Partners Asia.
The report’s authors project that streaming in the region will overtake TV by 2027, driven foremost by China and India, with SVOD’s share of the Asia-Pacific video industry’s total revenues rising from 44 percent in 2024 to over 54 percent by the end of the decade.
“The shift to online has become even more accelerated,” says Vivek Couto, MPA’s executive director. “We’re seeing deepening pools of subscriber growth on SVOD, a much stronger local advertising ecosystem develop, as Netflix and Amazon Prime Video put out their ad-tier offerings and local players building very strong ad propositions in many of these markets.”
The video markets of APAC will remain dwarfed by the domestic U.S. streaming market, but the gap is narrowing. By 2029, U.S. streaming revenue is projected to grow to $140 billion, while APAC climbs to $89 billion. MPA estimates that in 2024, revenues generated in APAC comprised the following share of total sales for the major U.S. video platforms: YouTube, 25 percent (includes ads and subscriptions); Netflix, 12 percent; Prime Video, 10 percent; Disney, 10 percent (entertainment and sports, but excluding consumer products).
While subscription video has begun to saturate in many developed markets of the West, spurring a push towards consolidation, SVOD subscriptions significantly accelerated in 2024 across APAC, with net new subscriptions more than six times higher than in 2023. Driven by India, China, Japan, Thailand, Indonesia, Korea and Australia, and fuelled by local and global players, SVOD subscriptions are projected to grow from 644 million in 2024 to 870 million by 2029, according to MPA.
“This growth is supported by new low-cost ad tiers, expanding sports offerings, and new content marketplaces,” the report’s authors say.
MPA sees six key markets accounting for approximately 90 percent of the incremental video industry revenue growth that’s to come in the region over the next half-decade: India (26 percent), China (23 percent), Japan (15 percent), Australia (11 percent), Korea (9 percent), and Indonesia (5 percent). The fastest-growing business model categories in terms of new dollars over the period will be user-generated content platforms and social video series ($10.7 billion), followed by SVOD ($8.4 billion), and premium AVOD ($5.0 billion). In 2024, advertising accounted for 52 percent of total APAC video revenue; this is projected to increase to 54 percent by 2029, fuelled by the ongoing expansion of premium AVOD.
MPA also projects a slight powershift to come, with local operators chipping away at the major U.S. players. The big six global video services — YouTube, Netflix, Meta, Disney, Amazon Prime Video, and TikTok — held a 67 percent share of the APAC online video revenue market in 2024, excluding China. But this share is projected to decline to 62 percent by 2029 as local players gain prominence in India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, and Thailand.
Adds Couto on the report’s findings: “The online video market is experiencing a surge, driven by increased engagement and monetization. However, the decline in traditional TV revenue and challenges in achieving profitability in local streaming are accelerating industry consolidation and M&A activity, particularly in India, Japan, Korea, Australia, and Southeast Asia. While streaming profitability is emerging in certain markets, the overarching focus remains on optimizing monetization strategies and streamlining operational efficiency.”
