Digital video is experiencing strong demand in South East Asia, with Vietnam, Thailand, and the Philippines showing the highest average time spent watching online videos in the region. YouTube, which accounts for more than 50% of the online videos viewed in South East Asia, offers a platform for a new business concept – Multi-Channel Networks (MCNs) – to flourish, monetizing video content through content aggregation and curation, cross-promotions and advertising. Having already seen huge successes of MCNs in the United States (e.g. Maker Studio and Machinima), the industry could be looking at South East Asia for potential opportunities for new MCN players to enter the YouTube space.
Daily Time Spent (minutes/day) Watching Online Videos (4Q 2014)
Source: TigerMine Ventures, GlobalWebIndex Research 2014
Weekly percentage of internet users who watch Online Videos (2014)
Source: Moore
Despite availability of YouTube’s platform and a high degree of online video consumption among internet users in SE Asia, demand for online content from regional MCNs has yet to take off. This is partly due to a lack of good broadband networks and partly because emerging MCNs have deployed a wide range of content which is not yet well organized.
Therefore, MCNs need to create a strong ecosystem within specific content genres and subsequently introduce brand marketing to grow. MCNs are likely to improve their chances of success by:
Focusing on a single content genre in their early stages to build a sticky user base
Start with their domestic market, and tap into foreign markets, reaching out to foreign consumers as well as their diaspora
Later on, diversify by gradually shifting towards content management and brand marketing to improve monetization
In summary, in SE Asia, digital video producers are growing and MCNs are emerging. Pioneer Consulting Asia understands the factors which will enable these players to grow and thrive as well as the digital preferences of viewers in SE Asian countries. To find out more, please contact us at info@pioneerconsultingasia.com.