Netflix announces plans to expand across Asia

Home > Business > Industry

print dictionary print

Netflix announces plans to expand across Asia

Netflix plans to enter Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore early next year, as the online video streaming pioneer races to complete an envisioned global rollout in 2016.

The company will begin by streaming a selection of popular TV shows, movies and kid-friendly programming. Most will come with local subtitles and further details such as pricing will be disclosed later, it said in an e-mailed statement Wednesday.

News of the Los Gatos, California-based company’s Asian expansion comes a week after it started service in Japan. Netflix plans to complete a global expansion by the end of next year as it pursues sources of revenue beyond its home market. Its growth prospects have made the stock the top performer in the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index this year, with subscribers exceeding 65 million in 50 countries.

Still, the shares have pulled back in recent weeks, in part due to concern over increased competition for viewers’ dollars. Time Warner’s HBO, Hulu and Amazon.com have all boosted their online offerings this year, while Apple is considering its own video streaming service.

Netflix fell 3.9 percent to $94.95 at the close in New York, the seventh-straight daily decline. The stock has risen 95 percent this year.

While the United States and Europe are heavily contested, much of Asia outside of China remains fertile ground for streaming services in search of new markets.

Netflix expanded to New Zealand and Australia in March and this month began streaming in Japan.


Bloomberg


Log in to Twitter or Facebook account to connect
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
help-image Social comment?
s
lock icon

To write comments, please log in to one of the accounts.

Standards Board Policy (0/250자)