Netflix is building partnerships, network infrastructure and “in particular the content” to aid its growth in Asia, CEO Reed Hastings told delegates at Asia Pacific Operators Summit (APOS) in Bali.
Netflix Originals are being made “faster in Asia than in earlier markets,” chief content officer Ted Sarandos said at the summit, adding: “We are doing a film in Korea called Okja under director Joon Ho Bong, a film in Cambodia by Angelina Jolie and original TV series in Japan”.
Bollywood films are also within Neflix’s sights, but are a few years down the line. “We will do movies the world watches. We will work with local producers. Imagine the traction [a film] would get with our 81 million and expanding global members,” said Sarandos.
The issue of censorship was also touched upon during the interview with Vivek Couto, executive director of Media Partners Asia, which organised APOS.
“We have to really help the creative freedom of storytellers. The art is finding that balance with local authorities,” said Sarandos. “For the most part the Internet is not as highly regulated as broadcast. There’s no passive viewing on Netflix. Regulators have found that to be a differentiating factor between broadcast and Netflix.”
Although the US streaming giant has not divulged the number of video-on-demand (VOD) subscribers it has recruited since its launch in Asia, Hastings said “of the new 6.7 million members in the latest quarter, 4.51 million are from international [markets]”.
He added: “Netflix has barely been optimised. It’s an ongoing process of delivery to Asia. We are far below the number of languages we need to support. We support 21 languages; YouTube is over 50.”
Netflix is also continuing its efforts to enter the Chinese market. “Great rewards can follow great patience,” Hastings told delegates.