The Asia-Pacific screen entertainment economy is entering a more competitive phase as digital platforms prepare to capture an increasing share of what will become a $175 billion regional revenue pie by 2030, according to data presented at the APOS summit 2025 opening session.

Speaking to more than 550 industry delegates at the 16th edition of the Bali-based conference, Media Partners Asia founder Vivek Couto outlined a regional landscape where “the next wave in Asia is here and it looks very different.”

The data paints a picture of slowing growth across the region’s screen entertainment sector. After generating $36 billion in new revenue from 2020-2025 during the pandemic boom, the industry expects only $16 billion in incremental growth over the next five years, largely due to legacy TV erosion.

“The bar is higher. Every dollar will be harder to win,” Couto told attendees. “We are entering a tougher, more competitive monetization phase where growth must be earned.”

Despite revenue headwinds, screen proliferation continues across the region. Asia-Pacific will grow from 4.5 billion screens today to 5.5 billion by 2030, with connected TV emerging as the fastest-growing segment at 13% compound annual growth rate. The CTV installed base will hit 360 million homes by 2030, with 40% of all TVs connected by that date.

“Smartphones remain the largest base, rising from 3.6 billion to 4.4 billion, anchoring consumption across every format,” Couto noted.

Indonesia leads screen growth momentum, followed by the Philippines and Thailand, though China and India dominate scale with 72% of total screens by 2030.

Traditional TV’s share of regional revenues will drop from 49% today to 41% by 2030, while premium video-on-demand grows to 29% and user-generated content/social video rises to 24%. Theatrical revenue remains flat.

“Monetization is therefore decisively and inexorably shifting towards digital,” Couto said.

Three markets – China, Japan and India – account for nearly three-quarters of total regional revenues, but their monetization models differ dramatically. China focuses on short videos, micro dramas and mature premium VOD underpinned by transactions and ads. Japan emphasizes premium, TV-centric content with high ARPU SVOD and fast-growing premium AVOD. India operates a dual engine of ads and value-conscious subscriptions across streaming and TV.

The region’s creator economy is exploding, with more than 100 million creators today expected to grow to 165 million by 2030. “Creators now dominate audience time, cultural impact, and commerce activation,” Couto observed.

In China, platforms like Douyin and Bilibili enable creator monetization across short video, e-commerce and livestreaming. India’s creator economy is multiplying across multiple languages, while Southeast Asian creators are culturally embedded in branded content and live selling.

China’s micro drama category has become a $7 billion market in 2024, with ultra-short serialized content designed for scrolling and shopping. The format is globalizing, with $1.2 billion projected globally in 2025 outside China.

“It’s content that’s part entertainment, part funnel,” Couto said. “China’s micro-drama model is now a content-industrial complex.”

YouTube dominates as “the new TV” with ads, subscriptions and CTV growing to $18-19 billion regionally by 2030. ByteDance’s Douyin and TikTok reach almost $10 billion through short video and social commerce, while Netflix leads premium VOD outside China.

Local champions including Foxtel, TVING, Vidio and TrueID prove “scale can be built and defended outside the global giants,” according to Couto.

Premium content investment is becoming more focused, growing from $17 billion to $21 billion by 2030 in streaming-only spending. “The era of overspending is over,” Couto said. “Platforms are now asking: What drives retention? What monetizes? What helps build a marketplace?”

Streaming platforms are actively raising prices across tiers globally and locally, with increases seen for Disney+, Netflix, Prime Video and local players. “ARPU expansion is a key lever as platform cost structures and bundling intensifies,” the presentation noted.

Premium AVOD is growing steadily, especially in India where it offsets linear TV decline. However, retail media emerges as the top digital ad growth engine, led by China ($26 billion), India ($10 billion) and Japan ($9 billion) from 2025-2030.