Disney+ Hotstar pulls in 2.5m subscribers in Indonesia, surpassing Netflix

Total paying subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) customers for the top 10 operators in Indonesia reached roughly 7 million, with Disney contributing a significant chunk to that number.

According to research platform Media Partners Asia (MPA), Disney+ Hotstar took the top spot, attracting 2.5 million subscribers in the country. It was followed by Viu with 1.5 million subscribers, Vidio with 1.1 million, and Netflix with 850,000.

The top four platforms account for 83% of total SVOD customers, data from the research showed.

Photo credit: Anthony Quintano

“The growth of SVOD in Indonesia, the most populous market in Asia after China and India, is encouraging but has a long way to go,” said Anthony Dobson, vice president at MPA. The country saw a net addition of about 3.6 million subscribers between September 2020 to January 2021, according to the report.

Much of the recent growth is driven by mobile distribution and pricing, with Disney+ Hotstar leading the way through its partnership with Indonesian wireless network provider Telkomsel, he added. However, subscribers still represent less than 3% of the population and 10% of households, leaving a lot of room for further growth.

Meanwhile, Dobson said he expects subscribers of US platform WeTV and China’s iQiyi to grow in the future, as both players see significant demand for Chinese and Korean dramas and Japanese anime on their free tiers.

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India’s Disney+ Hotstar was launched in September 2020 after the Walt Disney Company acquired Star India’s parent company, 21st Century Fox, in a US$71 billion deal in June 2018. The combined entity now offers movies, series, and factual content from Disney, Fox, Marvel, Lucasfilm, Pixar, and National Geographic. It also releases Disney+ originals and distributes over 250 local films.

With the partnership between Disney+ Hotstar and Telkomsel, average monthly subscription prices for the video platform range from US$0.8 to US$1.4 for Telkomsel users – compared to US$1.1 to US$2.6 for direct subscribers.

In December 2020, the Walt Disney Company announced that it would be rolling out Disney+ in Singapore in February this year to go up against offerings from Netflix, Amazon, Apple, HBO, and Viu.