Content investments in India, Korea and Southeast Asia grew 21% to $ 10 billion in 2021, but the film was contracted due to delayed releases.

Video content budgets in India, Korea and Southeast Asia grew 21% to $ 10.4 billion in 2021 and are projected to grow 15% to $ 12 billion in 2022, according to a Media Partners report. Asia (MPA).

According to the report, titled Asia Video Content Dynamics 2022, investments in Asian content increased last year as major carriers “filled their content pipelines in 2020 following initial waves of out-of-stock programming inventory due to Covid.” .

The report tracks content consumption, investment and production costs in seven key Asian markets: India, Indonesia, South Korea, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam. The data includes investments in pay TV, online video and cinema.

All of these verticals are growing with the exception of theatrical films, which saw a 2% drop in investment as pandemic restrictions delayed releases in many markets. However, film spending is projected to increase 140% in 2022 when cinemas start showing new locally produced films.

Pay TV was the largest vertical in 2021, accounting for 46% of the industry’s total content spending, reflecting the strength of the pay TV sectors in India and Korea.

The OTT content was the fastest growing vertical, growing 83% year-over-year to become the second largest vertical with 26% of the industry’s spend. FTA is the third with 25% of the total.

Korea and India were the largest content investment markets with a combined total of $ 7.4 billion; Generating particularly strong OTT investment growth. Other markets reach $ 400-900 million each, with Thailand and Indonesia also contributing significantly to the growth of OTT investments.

The report showed that growth will continue into 2022, albeit at a slower pace, with investments forecast to rise 15% to $ 12 billion. Again, India and Korea will account for most of the growth, but all markets and verticals are expected to grow. Investments in online video content will increase by nearly $ 700 million.

“Inflation, especially in online originals, is clearly a factor that drives up the cost of content. Online video operators, broadcasters and producers need to see that higher budgets translate into a more premium viewing experience; Otherwise, the cost increase will not be sustainable, “MPA Vice President Stephen Laslocki said, commenting on the report.

“Successful international programming remains the holy grail of content licensing, which has so far only been consistently achieved in Korean dramas and some anime, as well as US and British content. United. Some Thai content has been successful outside of the Thailand. The values ​​of quality production, a strong story centered on a young online demographic will be the building blocks of future investment strategies. “

Laslocki also said that the expansion of the online video industry “has been a boon to independent producers” as profit margins have stabilized at 10% or more across much of the region.

“More could be done to empower independent producers, including additional compensation for original concepts, corresponding rewards for groundbreaking achievements, and extensive use of ongoing agreements (which allow producers to recoup overheads more reliably). “In return, producers must be transparent about production costs. Commissioners must be willing and able to control spending.”

The report also found that TV ratings continue to decline as viewers turn to online video. However, video consumption is still skewed towards UGC platforms (YouTube, TikTok, etc.), which account for 95% of consumption in Vietnam and 82% in Korea.