The market for subscription video-on-demand, or SVOD, in will nearly triple across the Middle East and North Africa in the next five year, growing some $2.1 billion, according to a newly published study by British-based Digital TV Research.
The study, released Monday, found SVOD revenues in the MENA region would grow from less than $1 billion today to $2.97 billion by 2025 as Netflix and other SVOD platforms increase their investment in the fast-growing region. The report predicts that Turkey will generate $908 million in SVOD revenues by 2025, with Saudi Arabia adding $563 million and Israel $470 million. The forecast expects SVOD subscribers to top 29.63 million by 2025, up from the 12.25 million recorded at the end of last year.
Market-leader Netflix is set to benefit most from the projected growth, with Digital TV Research expecting it to more than double its subscriber base from 4 million to 10.17 million and account for 38 percent of all SVOD subscriptions in the region. StarzPlay, a subscriber service owned by Lionsgate which is strong in the MENA, is forecast to more than double its SVOD customers to some 3 million by 2025, accounting for 23 percent of the market.
Netflix has been targeting the MENA region for some time now, greenlighting several big-budget scripted series from the Mideast, including the Arabic horror series