VIU, A leading over-the-top (OTT) video service widely available in Asia and the Middle East, hopes to redefine the digital entertainment industry in Myanmar with its entry into the market last month, said Lavina Tauro, country manager of Viu Myanmar.
Tauro said in an interview that her team has worked hard to bring something new to the Myanmar market, in order to be able to compete with the existing players there. She was proud to say Viu is the first and only OTT service to ensure that all international content is available with Myanmar subtitles and is downloadable.
“It has been months of hard work to ensure we give our fans in Myanmar what they want. Myanmar is in the nascent stage of OTT services; however, the growth of digital services in this market is unlike any other,” Tauro said.
Before launching its services in Myanmar on September 4, the company did an in-depth study of the market.
The research found that the country has much market potential, she said, pointing to the more than a half-million followers on its Facebook page within three months.
“Myanmar is a true emerging market, and it has the right mix of population size, data usage penetration and initial trends that show video consumption will definitely be on the rise,” said Tauro. “The love that consumers have for us is really overwhelming and it is shown by the increased number of fans coming on to our app over and over again.” According to the research findings, the consumers in Myanmar are passionate about three main things – 100 per cent Myanmar subtitles, downloadable content and popular content from across Asia.
To respond to customer demand, Viu has integrated people with global expertise and those with local experience to ensure they steer the business to become the top OTT player in the market, she said.
“If you are looking for the best of Asian entertainment, Viu is the destination for you. So far, our shows and movies are available in five languages – Burmese, Thai, Indian, Japanese and Korean. All our movies and shows come with 100 per cent Myanmar subtitles,” she said.
Since it regionally launched two and a half years ago, the company has rapidly grown and amassed over 20 million active users.
“Every year our fan base keeps growing and the video consumption in our markets is rising. So, we are very positive about our stand here in Myanmar too,” she said.
Despite her confidence in Viu’s growth, Tauro also discussed the challenges they faced in Myanmar.
“Our challenge in this market was to quickly adapt to the fact that this is not a market where email is prevalent, unlike any other market. The subtitle font used here is local and the data feed can be a deterrent to video viewing,” she said.
“We have worked on these challenges every step of the way. We are not 100 per cent there, but we understand the pulse of the consumer and are constantly evolving.”
Tauro said the category and the ecosystem must be nurtured and grown together. She believes it makes the most sense for a digital video service to partner with others from the ecosystem so that it can come up with innovative bundled products.
“We are always working hard to give our consumers an unparalleled experience. We are very active in developing Viu Originals that highlights the creativity and world-class storytelling, production of local and independent digital moviemakers,” she said.
The company envisions Viu Orginals as a showcase of local creative talents. At the same time, it supports the local entertainment industry to leverage global expertise and produce top quality films and series, she said.
“We are planning to have the same for this market and we are excited to collaborate with top Myanmar artists for our projects,” she said.
Viu has partnered with Myanmar Net, one of the leading data service providers in Myanmar, to offer bundle pack that enable consumers to watch their favourite shows without worrying about data. The pack starts from 1500 kyats (Bt30) for unlimited viewing of Viu’s content for five days.
