Apos

• The APOS conference identified eight key themes shaping Asia's entertainment landscape for 2026, with a primary focus on AI, sports, vertical content, and government incentives. • Crunchyroll is expanding into Taiwan and South Korea, signaling a shift where anime fandom is leveraged as a primary economic engine for growth. • JioStar Sports CEO Ishan Chatterjee reported massive scale in cricket viewership, reaching 1.2 billion viewers per IPL season and a record 72.5 million concurrent digital viewers during the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 Final.

• Amazon's Prime Video is positioning itself as an "entertainment hub" in the Asia-Pacific region through radical localization and a network of over 600 distribution partners. • In Japan, the service has expanded across four key pillars: anime, scripted entertainment, unscripted programming, and live sports. • The strategy includes a growing live boxing business launched in 2022 with 15 events, alongside various manga adaptations to better engage local audiences.

• Premium VOD users in Southeast Asia spend only 8% of their digital time watching premium content, with the majority dedicated to social media, messaging, gaming, and short-form video. • Media expert Dhivya highlights a shift in viewing habits, stating that "there's no primetime anymore" as second-screen usage rewires regional attention spans. • Local stories are currently outperforming Korean dramas in markets with high content investment, specifically Indonesia and Thailand.

• The APOS 2026 conference identified eight key themes shaping Asia's entertainment landscape, with a primary focus on AI, sports, intellectual property, and vertical content. • Crunchyroll is expanding into Taiwan and South Korea, treating anime fandom as a primary economic engine rather than a secondary marketing tool. • JioStar Sports CEO Ishan Chatterjee reported massive growth in cricket viewership, projecting 1.2 billion viewers for the 2026 IPL season and a record 72.5 million concurrent digital viewers for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 Final.

• Video-on-Demand (VOD) users in Southeast Asia spend only 8% of their digital time on premium content, with the vast majority dedicated to social media, messaging, gaming, and short-form video. • In markets with significant content investment, such as Indonesia and Thailand, local stories are currently outperforming popular Korean dramas. • Conversely, Korean content and other international imports continue to hold a larger market share in the Philippines and Malaysia.

• Amazon regional entertainment leaders presented their strategy to transform Prime Video into a comprehensive "Entertainment Hub" for the Asia-Pacific region during the APOS 2026 conference in Bali. • The company highlighted its aggressive localization efforts and the establishment of over 600 distribution partnerships to expand its market reach. • A key development is the launch of a new ad-supported tier in India, integrated through Amazon MX Player to attract a broader user base.

• The APOS 2026 media summit has commenced, bringing together top executives from global streaming giants including Netflix, Prime Video, Disney+, and HBO Max. • Key agenda items include the impact of AI on human creativity, featuring insights from Andy Serkis, and the economic viability of the emerging microdrama format. • The event will focus heavily on the Indian media landscape, specifically the operations of industry giant JioStar and startups aiming to reduce production costs and timelines.