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Amazon Prime Video to boost India content; China's Bilibili files for US IPO

In this biweekly Asia video spotlight feature, S&P Global Market Intelligence provides a roundup of news related to over-the-top, video-on-demand and other online video initiatives in different Asian markets.

Top news

* Amazon.com Inc. is planning to add more regional content to its Prime Video streaming service in India, Reuters reported March 11. Tim Leslie, global vice president for Amazon Prime Video, touted India as the fastest-growing market for the platform, following investments in original Hindi shows and a film library in five Indian local languages. James Farrell, Asia-Pacific content head for Amazon Prime Video, reportedly added that the streaming service has been adding more films in southern Indian languages such as Tamil and Telugu.

* Chinese anime-streaming platform Bilibili has filed for a U.S. IPO of up to US$400 million of its class Z ordinary shares. The Shanghai-based company, which has applied to list its American depositary shares on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol BILI, has not yet specified the number of shares or price range for the IPO. Bilibili plans to allocate the net proceeds to investing in and developing its technologies — specifically artificial intelligence, big data capability and cloud technology — and to marketing. The company will also use the funds for general corporate purposes, which may include content acquisition and licensing, as well as "potential strategic acquisitions, investments and alliances."

Content and carriage deals

* South Korean creative content company Seventytwo Seconds Co. Ltd., or 72 Seconds, signed a content distribution deal with European video platform Dailymotion SA, E Daily reported March 13. Under the partnership, 72 Seconds content will be available in Dailymotion.

* Astro Malaysia Holdings Bhd. partnered with iQiyi to offer content produced by the Chinese streaming service in Malaysia, Xinhua reported March 13.

* LINE TV, an online video streaming platform of LINE Thailand Co., is teaming up with GMM Grammy PCL to co-produce music content and music-oriented programs, Bangkok Post reported March 7.

* Z Trading Co. Ltd., the distributor of GMM Z Stream set-top box, struck a deal with iflix Sdn. Bhd.'s Thai unit wherein the set-top box will come pre-installed with the iflix app. According to Siam Phone, the deal also gives users of the GMM Z Stream set-top box free access to iflix for three months.

Service launches

* Viacom Inc.'s Nickelodeon partnered with Telkomsel to launch Nickelodeon Play, an app which allows users to play games and stream video content, in Indonesia, according to a March 8 news release.

* TV4 Entertainment Inc. and Multi Channels Asia Pte. Ltd. launched Omni Channels Asia, a joint venture to localize and exclusively distribute TV4's channels and original productions throughout Asia, Advanced Television reported March 6. The venture will also acquire homegrown Asian content for its channels and secure local production partners for original content development. The content will be packaged and distributed to mobile, OTT and pay TV carriers.

* Premium Platform Japan Inc. said March 3 that it will launch Paravi, a new video subscription-based streaming service that will feature drama, anime and radio audio content.

* Tata Sky Ltd. extended its live TV and on-demand service by making it available on the web, Television Post reported March 3. Subscribers of the Indian direct-to-home operator can watch live TV and on-demand content at watch.tatasky.com by logging in with their registered mobile number.

Other news

* Netflix Inc. denied a rumor that the company is closing down its Japanese drama department and giving up the creation of drama content in Japan, Nlab reported March 13. Netflix Japan said it would continue to create live action content and increase its efforts in the anime field.

* Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.-owned Youku is suing Beijing Byte Dance Telecommunications Co. Ltd.'s Toutiao and video platform Yuncheng Sunshine media for distributing the film "Wolf Warriors 2," for which Youku has exclusive online distribution rights, TechNode reported March 9.

* Chinese live streaming platform Huajiao Live is eyeing an IPO in Hong Kong toward the end of the year, Sina reported March 9, citing sources.

* Chinese video streaming app Inke lnc. is considering an initial public offering in Hong Kong after a failed attempt in 2017 to complete a back-door A-share listing in China, China Money Network reported March 8.

* Tencent Holdings Ltd. invested US$632 million in Chinese livestreaming platform Douyu, just days after Douyu competitor HUYA Inc. revealed plans for an initial public offering in the U.S., China Money Network reported March 8.

* FOXTEL is in discussions with subscription video platforms Netflix and Stan about bundling their services together. According to The Sydney Morning Herald, a tie-up between the three companies might mean Foxtel customers will only have to pay a single bill to watch the full range of content from Stan, Netflix or both, on a single platform.