Indonesia and the GCC Ride the Streaming Wave

Asia’s fast‑growing entertainment and media (E&M) markets are entering 2026 with strong momentum, and two very different geographies—Indonesia and the Gulf—illustrate the forces reshaping how content is created, distributed and monetised. While Indonesia is becoming one of the world’s most dynamic OTT video battlegrounds, the GCC is quietly building a 2‑billion‑dollar video market powered by streaming and social media.​

An Intellias industry outlook describes Indonesia as an “untapped” yet rapidly maturing streaming market where global giants like Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney+ Hotstar and HBO Go face fierce competition from regional and local platforms such as WeTV, GoPlay, Mola TV and Vidio. After the switch‑off of analogue terrestrial broadcasting in 2022, Indonesians quickly embraced OTT: by that year, about one in three people in the country was consuming streaming video, driving a roughly 40 percent annual growth in hours watched. The market now generates around 13 billion dollars in annual E&M revenue and is projected to grow at a 7.7 percent CAGR through 2027, putting it on par with mid‑tier global markets like Brazil and Spain.​

This surge is fuelled by a historically underserved rural population gaining access to mobile broadband, as well as robust demand for local and sports content. Infrastructure projects, including subsea cables aimed at providing high‑speed broadband across the archipelago, are expected to further expand the addressable audience. As a result, Indonesia has become central to global streaming strategies in Southeast Asia, with investment in local originals and sports rights rising steadily.​

In the Gulf, Media Partners Asia estimates that the GCC video industry will reach around 2.1 billion dollars by 2026, driven by OTT streaming, pay TV and advertising. Statista’s media forecast notes that the region’s media market is seeing moderate but steady growth, propelled by a young, digitally savvy population and rising income levels. Consumers are increasingly drawn to on‑demand and personalised content, shifting away from traditional broadcast schedules. Social platforms are now primary sources of news and entertainment, blending global formats with local Arabic content and influencers.​

PwC’s Global Entertainment & Media Outlook highlights that some of the fastest‑growing E&M markets by consumer‑spend CAGR are located in emerging economies in Asia, the Middle East and Africa, with OTT video and gaming providing much of the growth. While Turkey, India and Nigeria top its ranking, GCC states benefit from similar drivers: young demographics, high smartphone penetration and strong interest in both global and home‑grown content. Esports, gaming and experiential events around them are also gaining momentum in hubs such as Riyadh and Dubai.​

For companies across Indonesia, the GCC, the Philippines and beyond, the challenge is to balance global platform partnerships with the development of robust local ecosystems. International players bring scale, technology and deep pockets for content and sports rights, but local and regional platforms often have better cultural fit, language depth and regulatory flexibility. Governments in the GCC and ASEAN are increasingly focusing on policies to nurture local production, protect cultural nuances and ensure that platforms contribute to national creative economies.​

Monetisation models are also in flux. Subscription, advertising‑supported and hybrid tiers are all being tested, with inflation and cost‑of‑living pressures making pure subscription models harder to scale in some segments. In Indonesia, ad‑supported tiers and telco bundles remain important; in the GCC, premium SVOD coexists with ad‑heavy social and FAST (free ad‑supported streaming TV) channels. Brands are following eyeballs, shifting budgets from traditional TV toward digital video and influencer collaborations.​

As 2026 unfolds, the key question for both Indonesia and the Gulf is whether local players can carve out sustainable niches in an increasingly crowded field. Those that can blend strong local storytelling with savvy tech partnerships and multi‑platform distribution stand the best chance of thriving as global competition intensifies.