The Southeast Asian video-on-demand landscape is experiencing significant growth, with over 1.5 million new subscribers added in Q2 2025, nearly double the growth from the previous quarter. Korean dramas have been a major driver of viewership in the region, capturing 35% of total viewing hours. Connected TV viewing is on the rise in key markets such as Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand, with total viewership exceeding 3.1 billion hours.
According to Vivek Couto, Executive Director of Media Partners Asia (MPA), Indonesia, Thailand, and the Philippines led the way in subscriber growth, driven by increased engagement with local and Asian content, especially Korean, Thai, and Indonesian. While Netflix remains the dominant player with 12.8 million subscribers across Southeast Asia, homegrown platforms like Viu and iQIYI are making significant strides, contributing to over 60% of total net new subscriber growth in Q2.
Disney+ made a strong impact in the Philippines through targeted promotions and franchise engagement, while Vidio maintained its position as Indonesia’s category leader with 5 million paid subscribers. Local storytelling is also gaining traction, particularly in Indonesia and Thailand, where a large percentage of users engage with local content.
Thai content has shown cross-border appeal, with platforms like Netflix and iQIYI contributing to its popularity. Chinese dramas are also driving engagement on platforms like WeTV, iQIYI, and Viu. In Thailand, True ID remains the largest subscriber base, but Netflix leads in premium VOD engagement.
The data from ampd’s expanded measurement capabilities, which now include coverage of connected TV, provides a comprehensive view of premium VOD viewership across Southeast Asia and other markets. Media Partners Asia, the company behind ampd, has been a key player in providing advisory and research services in the media and telecom sectors in the Asia Pacific region.
Overall, the Southeast Asian VOD landscape is evolving rapidly, with a mix of international and local content driving growth and engagement across the region. As more platforms compete for viewers’ attention, the market is set to become even more dynamic in the coming years.
