Netflix
Germany, India, Korea, Spain and Thailand are growing in the streaming originals mix, according to Ampere analysis
According to research and consultancy firm Ampere Analysis, Netflix and Amazon again became the dominant players worldwide in ordering original content in the first quarter of this year.
The pair have been challenged in recent years by the launch of studio-backed streaming platforms, but studio players have cut back amid Hollywood strikes, rising costs and pressure from Wall Street to prove they can grow profitably.
Ampere said Netflix delivered the highest number of new titles since the third quarter of 2021, and Amazon set a new record for quarterly commissions. The two streaming giants accounted for more than half (53%) of global streamer commissions between January and March 2024.
The report also found that both Netflix and Amazon are now “ordering the majority of their titles outside the US,” reflecting market saturation in the US and in line with their strategy of reaching local markets through local content. And the research firm predicted that this trend will continue.
Netflix’s commission growth has been driven by titles in Western Europe and Asia Pacific. “In Q1 2024, Netflix’s Western European commissions reached near parity with North American titles for the first time,” Ampere said. “Netflix is seizing the opportunity for international growth and is targeting proven portable content providers such as Spain, India and South Korea.”
Cost-effective, unscripted content was a key part of the platform’s Western European commissions, with documentaries accounting for 30% of regional orders, up from 23% last year.
In Asia, Thailand saw the largest individual increase with nine titles ordered in the first quarter of 2024. In India, the focus was on crime and thriller content. Ampere predicts that India will become Netflix’s largest subscriber network in the region.
In terms of subscriber count, Netflix lags behind several Indian streaming players, but the price is higher. And Ampere says it wants to compete more closely with Amazon in the country.
“Netflix has become increasingly reliant on ‘pay-one’ deals with theater studios to supply new, exclusive US films, and has cut back on original film orders. [U.S.] films. In contrast, it has increased its international film orders in areas such as the Nordics, Asia Pacific and Sub-Saharan Africa,” Ampere said.
Amazon focuses mainly on India. In the first quarter of 2024, Amazon commissioned a record 37 titles in India.
“Global streamers, including Amazon, have previously struggled to compete with local players offering strong regional content. However, this total indicates that Amazon plans to take on the established platforms and entrench India as the cornerstone of its international strategy,” Ampere said.
Amazon also announced its largest offering of original Indian films to date and is actively pursuing single-payment and co-financing deals with [Indian] theater distributors. Amazon’s orders for original films have generally been boosted by its acquisition of studio MGM two years ago. Numbers first overtook Netflix in the second quarter of 2023.
Germany, where Amazon leads Netflix in local subscribers, was the biggest winner in Western European commissions, with 13 content orders in the first quarter of 2024.
“North American market saturation, rising production costs, and the ongoing impact of Hollywood strikes have prompted Netflix and Amazon to increase investment in international productions to fuel subscriber growth. While several studio-backed SVoDs have cut back internationally, these two streaming giants are doubling down on their localized global strategy,” said Mariana Enriquez Denton Bustinza, senior researcher at Ampere.
But she also tried to distinguish between their strategies. “For Netflix, that means serving a broad subscriber base while leaning into markets whose productions offer the greatest potential for crossover appeal. Amazon’s approach remains more focused on key markets like India, while leveraging its global position to expand further into the theatrical market to generate downstream revenue from its platforms.”
Not mentioned in Ampere’s report: Amazon also claims mutual benefits of online entertainment and home shopping, or a “flywheel effect,” in those markets where it offers retail subscriptions.