APRIL 2019: The battle for a share of Indonesia’s video streaming market is in full swing, with 10 home-grown services jostling for space with regional rivals pushing a local content agenda and global giants that are starting to do the same.

Indonesian consumers had access to at least 21 video streaming services (excluding YouTube) in April this year, five more than we counted in June last year. 10 of these are home-grown platforms: Dens.TV, FirstMediaX, Genflix, Go-Play, MAXstream, MNC Now, M2V, Super Soccer TV, UseeTV Go and Vidio.com.

The local additions in our latest OTT count include MNC group‘s MNC Now; mobile TV service for in-car use in Jakarta/surrounding areas M2V; and the streaming service, Vidio.com from free-TV broadcast/production powerhouse, PT Surya Citra Media.

Outside of India and China, Indonesia, with its population of 261 million people and 345 million mobile subscribers, is Asia’s biggest streaming battleground, with a race for telco partnerships and a mission by platforms in play to offer pricing options – including daily “sachet” pricing – appropriate for local consumers who have proved, over the two or more decades that pay-TV operators tried, to be stubbornly resistant to paying for video entertainment.

Local audiences have access to myriad regional/global streaming online services, many of which are not customised for Indonesia, but an increasing number that are, including regional streaming services such as Viu, iflix and Hooq.

Also in play are platforms that are not necessarily programmed/localised for Indonesia but have local billing arrangements with telcos.

These include Taiwan’s CatchPlay On Demand, which launched in Indonesia in June 2016, and is offered as part of the subscription packages of IndiHome, First Media and Telkomsel. U.S.-listed South Asian service, Eros Now, tied up with Indonesian operator, XL Axiata, in mid-December 2018 to offer on-demand programming on home broadband entertainment service, XL Home. ErosNow is offered for IDR 26,000/US$1.80 a month and IDR 260,000/US$18 a year.

Netflix is increasingly active in Indonesia, starting from Rp109,000/US$7.54 a month for one SD screen and going up to Rp169,000/US$11.70 a month for four HD/UHD concurrent screens.

New as it is, the space is not without casualties, including Tribe, launched in Indonesia in April last year as part of a regional play by Malaysia‘s pay-TV powerhouse Astro. Astro pulled the plug in January this year, saying the business has been difficult to operate. There was an empathetic sigh all round.

Who’s who...

Indonesia has the full range of streaming/online apps, including Amazon Prime Video (free seven-day trial, then US$2.99 a month for the first six months, then US$5.99 a month); and Netflix (see page 32) which has been ramping up its local acquisitions and ventured into local originals in October 2018 with Timo Tjahjanto’s The Night Comes for Us. Apple has been offering movies and songs through iTunes, but not TV shows, and hasn’t yet said whether its new AppleTV+ service will be available in Indonesia. There’s no shortage of Indian/South Asian content accessible directly to Indonesian consumers, including online platforms such as AltBalaji (US$1.40 for three months); Eros Now (US$1.80 a month); YuppTV (from US$9.99 a month), Spuul (from Rp29,000/US$2 monthly for the Premium Lite subscription), as well as, in the case of Eros Now, with local telco/broadband providers (see listing below). Regional streamers, including CuriosityStream distributed out of Singapore by Monty Ghai’s brandwith, and iWonder from former iflix programming head James Bridges, are standing on the border looking at options. Bridges says iWonder is available in Indonesia through iflix and is considering a direct-to-consumer play.

Catchplay onDemand

About Streaming VOD service offering blockbusters/movies

Owned by Catchplay, headquartered in Taiwan

Launched June 2016 (IndiHome), July 2016 (standalone), April 2017 (Telkomsel), April 2018 (First Media)

What’s on Regional, international, Hollywood movies and documentaries. Added drama in March 2019 with HBO Asia’s original Taiwan series, The World Between Us

How much From Rp16,000/US$1.10 for single title rentals to Rp60,000/US$4.20 a month

No. of subs Undisclosed

Who’s in charge Daphne Yang, CEO

Content boss

Shao Chen,

associate director, digital content

Content partners include NBCUniversal International TV Distribution, Warner Bros, Paramount, Disney, HBO Asia, independent studios

Dens.TV

About Streaming linear/VOD/catch-up platform available on multiple devices

Owned by Digdaya Duta Digital, a part of CBN Group Indonesia

Launched May 2015

No. of users/subs 20,000 IPTV + 30,000 OTT

What’s on 50+ live TV channels and 1,000 hours of VOD content, including independent local short-films, kids, GE, lifestyle, movies and sports

How much Offered as part of fibre broadband packages starting from Rp299,000/US$21 a month (50 Mbps) to Rp799,000/US$56 a month (200 Mbps)

Content boss Ario B.

Widyatmiko, chief content officer

Eros Now

About Global streaming service offering Indian and South Asian entertainment content delivered across internet-enabled devices, including mobile, web and TV

Distribution Eros Now entered the Indonesian market through a TV content partnership with Xiaomi’s smart TV brand Mi TV in Sep 2018, followed by a deal with telco provider XL Axiata in Dec 2018

Owned by Mumbai-based, U.S. listed Eros International Media

No. of subs 142 million registered users and 15.9 million paying subscribers worldwide (April 2019)

What’s on 12,000 movie titles, TV shows and music videos, including originals such as 10-part biographical series Modi: Journey of a Common Man, directed by Umesh Shukla (April 2019)

Pricing Rp26,000/US$1.80 a month or Rp260,000/US$18 a year

Who’s in charge Rishika Lulla Singh, CEO, Eros Digital (pictured left)

Content boss

Ridhima Lulla, chief content officer

FirstMediaX

About A geo-blocked TV anywhere extension of cable/DTH TV service HomeCable

Owned by First Media

Launched Feb 2014 as First Media Go and relaunched in June 2016

What’s on 100+ live streaming channels and a seven-day catch-up service plus more than 500 hours of on-demand movies, Asian drama series and local content, mainly for First Media & BiGTV subscribers

How much Free for First Media and BiGTV subscribers

Content boss Rieta Fuad, head of content; Ferliana Suminto, corporate and content director

Genflix

About OTT platform targeting Indonesian youth and football fans

Owned by Festival Citra Lestari, a subsidiary of Mega Media Indonesia Group

Launched September 2013

No. of users Undisclosed

What’s on Live linear TV channels and VOD content, including kids and local/international movies/series

How much Rp49,000/US$3.40 a month for up to three devices with unlimited access

Who’s in charge Greeny

Dewayanti, director

Content partners Sony Pictures Television Networks Asia, Asahi Production, among others

Tech partners Irdeto, Elemental, WideVine, Conversant, Bitmovin

Go-Play

About Video platform driven by content creation unit, Go-Studios (Ed’s Note: Having generated loads of excitement in the local production industry with its content creation ambitions, Go-Jek went quiet in Q2 2018, just before the whole content piece seemed to go pear-shaped and the content team disappeared. Now Go-Jek is keeping a tight lid on its video ambitions, which is probably wise given their first efforts. But we are hearing that the new team is up and running under Go Entertainment boss Edy Sulistyo and it looks like the resurrection is beginning... Go-Jek has not yet responded to our questions about its plans)

Owned by Go-Jek, Indonesia’s multi-platform technology group, which provides access to services ranging from bike rides to payments and meal deliveries.

Hooq

About SVOD/TVOD/AVOD platform

Owned by Singtel (Hooq launched as a JV with Sony Pictures and Warner Bros, which have both grown increasingly silent on their involvement. Singtel seems to have stepped into the gap)

Launched in Indonesia April 2016

Distribution Grab, First Media, Bolt, Telkomsel, Ovo and Telkom IndiHome. Carrier billing deals with Telkomsel, XL Axiata, Hutchison 3, Indosat, SmartFren

No. of users/subs Not disclosed

What’s on 10,000+ hours of VOD content; live streaming of FTA channels; TVN, TVN Movies, Zee Bioskop, Discovery Channel, etc.

Pricing From Rp18,700/US$1.40 a week

Content boss Jennifer Batty, chief content officer

Original productions include six-part crime thriller Brata (2018), which is Hooq+Telkomsel’s first original collaboration; comedy Cek Toko Sebelah (2018); and Marlina the Murder in Four Acts (2017). Marlina The Murderer in Four Acts, about a widow who is raped and fights back, was Hooq’s first major investment in long-form original.

iflix

About Streaming platform with download/watch offline function, accessible on multi devices. Unveiled its third edition, iflix 3.0, in April 2018, which introduced a free, ad-supported layer to its SVOD service, along with linear local free-to-air and pay-TV channels plus live events and news

Launched in Indonesia June 2016

Owned by Catcha Group and Evolution Media Capital

No. of users/subs Undisclosed

What’s on iflix has gone big on Indonesian content, acquiring a dozen or more short-window theatrical releases from Screenplay Films, including Promise, Jailangkung 1 and 2, One Fine Day, Surat Cinta Untuk Starla: The Movie, The Perfect Husband, ILY from 38,000ft., Headshot, Magic Hour and the London Love Story trilogy. Magic Hour was spun off into two original series, and its success is paving the way for similar film-to-series development.

Original productions Whatever else has been going on inside iflix as the streamer expands, contracts and is/isn’t/IDK trying to list in Australia, the original production team under global director of original programming, Mark Francis, is rocking with, among other originals, a young adult supernatural horror series Conversation with Ghosts (working title) with Screenplay Films. The six-part horror drama – the first serialised horror for both iflix and Screenplay – tells a story of a girl who just wants to fit in at her new campus, but discovers she has supernatural abilities and a connection to the Occult, which threatens to alter her destiny forever. iflix has also partnered with Screenplay Films to produce 16 of 26 made-for-OTT movies based on stories from storytelling platform Wattpad. There’s also an eight-part drama in the works based on Indonesian writer Gina S Noer’s teen romance, Posesif, directed by Edwin and produced by Palari Films.

Pricing iflixVIP costs Rp39,000/US$2.70 a month

Who’s in charge Cam Walker, executive director of iflix Indonesia

Content boss Mark Francis, global director of original programming

Content

partners Indonesian content from Kharisma Starvision, Screenplay Films, Wattpad, Palari Films and others

Distribution partners Telkom’s IndiHome, Indosat Ooredoo, Telkomsel, XL Axiata

Tech partners Amazon Web Services (AWS), Vimond, Akamai, Intertrust Technologies, Bitmovin and CSG International

MAXstream

Owned by Telkomsel

Launched June 2018

No. of users 10 million (Feb 2019)

What’s on Live FTA (Net TV, tvOne, Kompas TV, Metro TV, JakTV, Antv), international channels (Cartoon Network, Warner TV, Oh!K, Discovery Channel, Discovery Asia, Eurosport, Animal Planet, TLC, Zoo Moo, Blue Ant Entertainment, beIN Sports 1/2/3, Nick Jr), Hooq, Viu, Nickelodeon Play

Originals/co-pro Offering includes 28 short films/series co-pro with Singapore-based short-film platform Viddsee. Premiered in Feb this year, the content is curated by Viddsee’s Indonesian team, and includes Loving A Tombstone (Mencintai Nisan), directed by Dmaz Brodjonegoro; Made In Bali, directed by Michael Phoroly; and Errorist of Seasons, directed by Rein Maychaelson. The Viddsee-MAXstream collaboration also included a four-episode romantic comedy, Unscripted Man, directed by Indonesia’s Rein Maychaelson. Unscripted Man is about an office employee who inherits a sacred script from his father. The script predicts the course of his life, including the exit of his girlfriend. In January this year, MAXstream also premiered its first co-pro with Malaysia’s Astro, Nawangsih. The 10-part horror drama Nawangsih is a story of a girl with an unusual connection to the spirit that lives inside an old lamp unearthed when the family moves into the house they inherited. Created by Indonesia’s Melly Goeslow, the series is directed by Hedy Suryawan. Other MAXstream originals include crime thriller Brata (Sep 2018), Critical Eleven (May 2017) and Pulang Pulang Ganteng (May 2017).

Pricing From Rp9,900/US$0.70 a month for the 1.5GB VideoMAX Nickelodeon Play pack to Rp100,000/US$7 a month for the 2GB VideoMAX beIN plan

Who’s in charge Crispin Tristram, head of digital lifestyle, Telkomsel

MNC Now

About OTT extension of MNC’s pay-TV services MNC Play & MNC Vision

Launched Feb 2018

Owned by PT Media Nusantara Citra (MNC), operated by subsidiary PT OTT MNC Indonesia

What’s on More than 115 TV channels and about 4,000 hours of on-demand content including originals from MNC Studios and MNC Pictures plus international content from Europe/U.S. as well as Asian content from Thailand, South Korea, Hong Kong, China, Malaysia and Japan

How much Free for MNC Vision and MNC Play subscribers

Content boss Iris Wee, chief content & commercial officer, MNC Vision Networks/CEO, MNC Now

M2V

About Mobile TV service for in-car use in Jakarta/surrounding areas

Owned by PT Mentari Multimedia

Launched in Indonesia 2009

What’s on More than 120 local/international channels, including MTV Asia and CNN

Pricing From Rp99,000/US$6.80 a month. Monthly add-on packages cost from Rp11,000/US$0.75 for the Fashion pack to Rp221,000/US$15 for the Gold pack

Netflix

About Global SVOD platform

Launched in Indonesia in Jan 2016. Added a fully localised Bahasa Indonesia interface in Oct 2018

Pricing Rp109,000/US$7.70 (SD, 1 screen), Rp139,000/US$9.80 a month (HD, 2 concurrent screens), Rp169,000/US$11.90 a month (HD/UHD, 4 concurrent screens). One-month free trial for new members.

What’s on Although visible original production activity isn’t anywhere near as high in Indonesia as in, for instance, India, Netflix does have the country on its content radar, including first original movie, The Night Comes for Us. Acquired Indonesian titles include Headshot, Laskar Pelangi, Merantau, Ada Apa Dengan Cinta 2, Galih dan Ratna and Filosofi Kopi, The Devil Take You and Rizal Mantovani’s horror show Kuntilanak. Bahasa Indonesia subtitles are available on select content. Netflix does not censor content for Indonesia, and continues to maintain that consumers are empowered to make viewing choices based on the features provided, including show info, ratings, age verification and parental controls

Distribution Available direct and via XL Axiata, Bolt, Hutchison 3 Indonesia and Smartfren

No. of subs Indonesia figures undisclosed

Content boss Robert Roy, vice president of content for Asia

Content partners AMC Networks, BBC, Discovery Communications, Disney, Dreamworks, GMM Grammy, JTBC, Lionsgate, NBCUniversal, Red Chillies Entertainment, Paramount Pictures, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Warner Bros, among others

Tech partners Amazon Web Services (AWS), Apple, Google, LG, Samsung, Sony and Microsoft, among others

Oona

About Ad-based mobile TV service

Launch December 2017

Distribution Launching the Oona TV app on Telkom Indonesia’s set-top box IndiBox in May 2019

What’s on More than 200 local/international channels, including Outdoor, a bouquet of brands from Omni Channels Asia and its partnership with U.S.-based channels provider TV4 Entertainment, all3media’s lifestyle channel Inside Outside, and a bundle of channels reformatted from YouTube

Pricing Free

No. of registered users 1.3 million. Targeting eight million users by end 2019

Who’s in charge

Christophe Hochart, CEO and founder

Content boss

Dominique Ullman, head of content partnerships

Other partners involved Says 700 merchants participated in a advertising/incentive scheme including GroupM in Indonesia (Sep 2018)

Tech partners SpotX, FreeWheel, Xaxis, GroupM

Super Soccer TV

About Sport OTT/streaming platform, geo-blocked for Indonesia

Launched Nov 2016

No. of users Upwards of 275,000

What’s on Live coverage of soccer matches (Garuda Select, Chinese Super League, Bundesliga and UEFA Youth League plus VOD content covering behind the scenes of Garuda Select

Pricing Rp50,000/US$3.45 a month

Who’s in charge Mirwan Suwarso, business development director

UseeTV Go

About An OTT/streaming extension of IPTV service UseeTV

Launched June 2011

Owned by Telkom Indonesia

(IndiHome)

What’s on Live streaming of select channels/events, video/karaoke on-demand content for subscribers of UseeTV/IndiHome for free

Vidio.com

About OTT service targeting youth/social media users

Launched Oct 2014 by PT Vidio Dot Com, added premium tier in Nov 2018 offering sports, movies and local/foreign content

Owned by PT Surya Citra Media (SCMA), which belongs to local media firm Emtek. SCMA also owns and operates free-TV channels SCTV, Indosiar and O Channel

What’s on UGC, 21 FTA channels, sports, news, local sinetron and Korean, Thai, Japanese and Chinese drama series. Premiered its first original series, Girls in the City, in Mar 2019. Produced by local production house SinemArt, the romantic series focuses on social peer pressure.

How much Freemium. Premium costs from Rp10,000/US$0.70 a day to Rp50,000/US$3.50 a month for the Vidio Premier + beIN pack

Who’s in charge Sutanto Hartono, CEO; Hermawan Sutanto, deputy CEO

Viu

Launched in Indonesia May 2016

No. of subs Indonesia subs not disclosed

What’s on Asian content, including local programmes from Starvision and Multivision Pictures along with Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Thai and Indian titles. Select Korean drama and variety from five major producers (KBS, SBS, MBC, CJ E&M, JTBC) are released in Indonesia at the same time as in Korea with subtitles in English as soon as eight hours after original telecast and in Bahasa Indonesia after 24 hours

Original productions Viu premiered its first Indonesia original production in Aug 2017 – 13-part romcom, Switch, about two best friends whose lives turn upside down when one fateful night their souls switch. This was followed by The Publicist, a 13-part romantic drama directed by Monty Tiwa and aired in Nov 2017. In May 2018, as part of its second anniversary celebration in Indonesia, Viu premiered its third Indonesia original series, Sunshine. Viu was also involved in film, releasing its first Indonesia original film, Kenapa Harus Bule? (directed by Nia Dinata) in Mar 2018.

How much Freemium. Premium tier is Rp30,000/US$2.10 a month

Content partners Starvision, Multivision Pictures (Indonesia); KBS, SBS, MBC, CJ E&M, JTBC (Korea); Fuji TV (Japan); GMM (Thailand)

Distribution partners Telkomsel, Three (Hutch Indonesia), XL Axiata, Smartfren, Tokopedia, Jd.id and Samsung Indonesia

Zee5 Global

About Streaming service targeting mainly the Indian and South Asian diaspora

Launched globally (excluding U.S.) in Oct 2018 in 190+ countries. Launched first in India in Feb 2018, consolidating Zee’s former AVOD OZee and SVOD dittoTV

Owned by Zee Entertainment

Enterprises Limited (ZEEL)

What’s on 100,000 hours of video on-demand content across multiple genres in English, Hindi, Bengali, Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Marathi, Oriya, Bhojpuri, Gujarati and Punjabi, as well as 60+ live TV channels, including Zee’s branded TV channels

Pricing Rp65,000/US$4.60 a month

Original productions ContentAsia counted about 55 originals titles (2019-released and library titles) on Zee5 (4 Apr 2019), including Arjun Rampal’s thriller The Final Call, 78-minute LGBTQ drama Sec 377 and Saqib Saleem’s crime/thriller Rangbaaz. Zee5 plans to launch 72 new originals in six languages in 2019/20

Localisation Plans to launch its content in international languages (voice dubbing), including Bahasa Indonesia, Thai, and Malay

Distribution Says various distribution deals with local telcos/partners is in the pipeline

Who’s in charge Amit Goenka, CEO, Zee International and Z5 Global

Content boss Archana Anand, chief business officer, Zee5 Global

Published in April 2019 in ContentAsia print+online magazine for APOS 2019