The balance of power in Asia-Pacific’s screen economy is changing fast. A new industry report reveals that streaming services, creator-led platforms, and connected TV (CTV) will fuel nearly all growth across the region through the end of the decade — while traditional television continues a steady, structural decline.
Online video takes complete control of growth
According to the latest Asia-Pacific Video & Broadband 2026 report, the region’s total screen revenues are projected to reach $196 billion by 2030, growing at a modest 2.8% annually between 2025 and 2030. But the headline is clear: every dollar of net growth will come from online video, which is expected to expand at a strong 7% CAGR.
In contrast, linear TV and legacy pay-TV models are steadily losing relevance, weighed down by declining advertising and subscription revenues.
Premium VOD expands, but pricing still matters
Premium video-on-demand — including both SVOD and premium ad-supported streaming — is forecast to add $12.5 billion in new revenue over the next five years, taking the category to $52 billion by 2030. Growth will be led by Japan, China and India, followed by Australia, South Korea and Indonesia.
A standout projection sees India overtaking China as the world’s largest SVOD subscription market, reaching 358 million individual subscriptions. However, revenue tells a different story. India’s premium VOD earnings are still expected to be 4.5 times smaller than China’s and 2.5 times smaller than Japan’s, highlighting the ongoing challenge of lower ARPU despite massive scale.
Creator platforms emerge as the biggest growth engine
User-generated and social video platforms are set to be the single largest driver of growth across the Asia-Pacific screen market. Revenues in this segment are projected to rise by $11.4 billion, hitting $44.5 billion by 2030.
Advertising growth, expanding CTV inventory, and evolving consumption patterns — including episodic short-form content and micro-dramas — are pushing creator-led platforms deeper into premium territory.
Traditional TV continues to shrink
While digital rises, traditional television is expected to lose $8 billion in revenue between 2025 and 2030. China, Japan and India will account for nearly 70% of the decline, with Australia and South Korea contributing another sizeable portion.
The shift reflects both audience behaviour and advertiser migration, as budgets follow engagement toward digital-first screens.
Connected TV becomes a core driver
Connected TV has now emerged as a structural pillar of growth. The region (excluding China) already has nearly 160 million CTV households, with another 100 million expected by 2030. Markets like Japan, India, South Korea, Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines and Australia are leading the big-screen streaming transition.
The move toward CTV is improving engagement, boosting pricing power, and delivering higher advertising yields — especially for premium content and live sports.
Power concentrates at the top
Market concentration is intensifying. The top 15 online video platforms already control 58% of total online video revenues, led by YouTube, TikTok, Douyin and Netflix, alongside strong regional players like JioHotstar in India and U-Next in Japan.
AI and new formats shape the next phase
The report also points to AI-driven efficiencies becoming a competitive advantage, with platforms deploying tools across production, localisation, post-production and marketing. This is reducing costs, speeding up workflows, and reinforcing the dominance of scaled platforms with deep libraries.
Emerging formats such as micro-dramas, already monetised in China, are expected to gain traction in India, Japan, Indonesia and Thailand.
Final words
The message from the report is unambiguous: value in Asia-Pacific media is shifting decisively toward streaming, social video, and CTV-led monetisation. Scale alone is no longer enough. The winners of the next decade will be platforms that combine pricing power, premium content, sports, local storytelling, and smarter technology — while traditional TV continues its long fade.
