Why The Streaming Giants Are Exiting Original Production In Southeast Asia & How Producers Plan To Bounce Back — Analysis

Producers in Southeast Asia are facing a very different, much quieter landscape to the one in front of them just 12 months ago, as U.S. players rein in their spending to appease shareholders, and neighboring countries such as Korea, Japan and India draw attention.

Southeast Asia, which at one point was considered a key growth opportunity for international streamers such as Prime Video and Disney+, has seen money drain out of its main markets. Spending was reeled in and layoffs hit original production staff amid the global streaming reset of last year, and the region has been one of the worst hit as a result. 

In fact, Netflix remains the only major American streamer still commissioning across the region — albeit at what several sources say is on a smaller scale in most countries compared to a few years back. (Netflix insiders refute this.) Disney+ and Prime Video have both completely cut their originals teams in Southeast Asia, opting instead for licensing and U.S. content, while the likes of Paramount+ and Max have limited or no presence yet.

Of course, the recent developments trace back to Wall Street, and shareholders’ demands that global streamers stop chasing subscriber numbers and start making money. “The whole business changed to profitability, and everybody started freaking out around the world,” said one source who was impacted by the streamer layoffs. “When that Wall Street news hit, that’s when we stopped having money to spend.”

Geographically, Southeast Asia comprises 11 states and is located in the area east of the Indian subcontinent, south of China and north of Australia. Korea and Japan neighbour to the east. Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam, Thailand, Myanmar and Malaysia are the largest countries by population, and have provided many of the original productions out of the region, though the small but high-functioning city state of Singapore is among the most influential media hubs in the region, with the likes of Prime Video and Netflix based there.

The area’s importance as a TV and film maker has been growing as streaming took off, but it has been relatively lowkey compared to other territories in Asia. Notably, there has been the