Business 5 min read By Morgan Griffin
Streaming and Local Film Push Asian Content Spending Past $15 Billion
Content investment across seven major Asian markets will rise from $14.8 billion in 2025 to $15.1 billion in 2026, with streaming and local film driving nearly all new spending as television budgets shrink, according to Media Partners Asia.
Content spending across seven major Asian markets will surpass $15 billion this year, driven almost entirely by streaming platforms and locally produced films as traditional television budgets contract, according to a new study from Media Partners Asia.
The report, titled «Asia Video Content Dynamics 2026,» projects that video content investment in India, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam will climb from $14.8 billion in 2025 to $15.1 billion in 2026. The figure is expected to reach $15.4 billion by 2031, signaling a period of steady but modest growth rather than the explosive expansion that characterized earlier years of the streaming boom.
The composition of that spending is shifting. Streaming services and local film production account for nearly all of the new capital entering the market, while television budgets continue to shrink. The dynamic reflects a broader reordering of Asia's entertainment economy, where global platforms and domestic filmmakers are competing for audience attention that increasingly bypasses traditional broadcast channels.
Media Partners Asia's findings suggest that the region's content market has entered a more mature phase. The gap between the 2025 and 2026 figures is roughly $300 million, a growth rate that indicates platforms are consolidating their investments rather than pursuing the aggressive spending sprees that marked the initial race for subscribers. The projected increase to $15.4 billion by 2031 implies an even slower pace of expansion over the following five years.
Local film production has emerged as a significant beneficiary of this shift. In markets such as Korea, whose cinema and television output has gained global prominence, and India, home to the world's most prolific film industry, domestic content continues to attract both platform investment and theatrical audiences. Streaming services have increasingly turned to local-language originals to differentiate their offerings and retain subscribers in markets where imported Hollywood content alone does not drive engagement.
The decline in television budgets underscores the structural challenges facing traditional broadcasters across the region. As advertising revenue migrates to digital platforms and younger viewers abandon scheduled programming, networks have less capacity to commission expensive scripted content. The result is a market where streaming platforms and film producers are absorbing the creative and financial energy that once flowed through television.
The seven markets covered by the study represent a substantial share of Asia's media consumption. India and Indonesia alone account for hundreds of millions of viewers, while Korea has established itself as a cultural exporter whose films and series regularly find audiences far beyond the region. Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam round out a group that spans varying levels of economic development and digital infrastructure, but which collectively represents one of the most dynamic content markets in the world.
The report's projections arrive as global streaming companies face pressure from investors to demonstrate profitability after years of heavy spending on content. In that environment, the Asian markets offer a combination of growth potential and relatively favorable production economics. Local-language content often costs less to produce than Hollywood equivalents while generating strong engagement among regional subscribers.
For the creative industries in these countries, the continued flow of capital into streaming and film represents both opportunity and uncertainty. Platforms have expanded the range of stories that can find audiences, but they also exercise significant control over which projects get made and how they are distributed. The balance between local production capacity and platform priorities will shape the region's entertainment output for years to come.
The study does not break down spending by individual platform or studio, but the overall trajectory is clear. Content investment in these seven markets is growing, and the growth is concentrated in the sectors that have most disrupted traditional television. Whether that momentum continues at the projected pace through 2031 will depend on subscriber trends, advertising markets and the willingness of platforms to keep funding local production at current levels.
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