In a fireside conversation at APOS 2023, a forum for the Asia Pacific media and telecoms industry hosted in Bali from September 26 to 28 by Media Partners Asia (MPA), Kelly Day, Vice President – International, Prime Video, underlined the brand’s mission to become a one-stop destination for video entertainment.
She said, “As a customer-first organisation, delivering great content selection, convenience of accessing the expansive content offerings and customer value, act as the major differentiators for Prime Video globally. Our mission is to become the one-stop entertainment destination, a place where customers can find all of their video entertainment under one roof, be it content produced by us or by other studios, content from our partners such as Paramount+, HBO Max, Starz, BritBox, accessible through Prime Video Channels, or titles to rent or buy via our TVOD Store; or fast channels, linear channels, AVOD channels that we have in many locales. So, we’re really trying to deliver the maximum selection possible.”
Day stated that since early 2022, Prime Video has launched 280 local original titles across 25 countries. It has also brought content to the service through over 500 channels partners from around the world, she noted.
On the importance of building local content offerings, Day said, “We do not want our customers to see Prime Video as one homogenised, global service. For each of our geos, we want customers to consider it as a local experience, but with all the benefits of getting a credible technology platform, with great global originals and other acquired content. Japan and India are two great examples where we have deeply invested in building an extensive array of local, authentic content that resonates with the customers.”
On the role of international content as a growth engine, she elaborated, “Original content is a key pillar of growth. Over the last few years, we have invested in a lot in our big/key tentpoles, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, The Wheel of Time, Reacher, Citadel, and Jack Ryan, and these titles really resonate with our Prime customers globally and we see these working in almost every country around the world. That’s really what brings people into Prime Video, and once we have them engage with the service, then there is so much more that they can explore, whether it is licensed content such as Yellowstone or The Last of Us or Barbie or Super Mario Bros. Movie. And that is what we are really focused on trying to provide at Prime Video – a very personalised and engaging experience so that whenever customers come to the service, they are always going to find something that works for them, that they want to watch.”
She added that the APAC region offers an ‘incredible’ subscriber growth opportunity with the content engine Prime is developing across Asia.
“Be it Japanese originals, Indian movies and series, Korean dramas, and much more, all this is resonating with customers not only in the local markets but across the world. Not just Asia, international content from Spain and Argentina is increasingly becoming popular with customers, including English-speaking markets such as the US, Canada, the UK, and Australia, to name a few. Customers from these locales are truly embracing the authentic, engaging, quality storytelling coming from all over the world.”
She identified Japan and India as the key growth drivers in the region. On the potential in Asia Pacific, Day said, “We are relatively new in Southeast Asia and are in different phases of maturity in different countries. Japan is one of our most mature locales, India has been a huge growth driver over the last couple of years, in other markets we are just getting started, but we are incredibly excited by the opportunity here.”
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