Asian Netflix rival raises $90m

Asian SVOD service iflix has raised US$90 million to use on international expansion.

Cable giant Liberty Global, pay TV firm Sky, Middle Eastern mobile operator Zain, and LA-based Evolution Media were among the investors.

Sky and Evolution have previously put funds towards the Malaysia-based service, which has been expanding in the Asia region as rivals such as Netflix and Amazon aim to take market share.

Having debuted in the Philippines and Malaysia in 2015, it is now available in nine territories in Southeast Asia, and its sights are firmly set on expanding in the Asia region and beyond.

Liberty Global chief programming officer Bruce Mann said: “Investing in an innovative emerging business like iflix enables the company to gain an even greater insight into SVOD services, as it continues to develop its own evolving video entertainment propositions for millions of our customers throughout Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean.”

iflix CEO Mark Britt (pictured) said the latest round of funding would allow iflix to seie on an “immense opportunity” to expand, and to “continue to empower local consumers and provide them with the best content and services available, and the freedom to enjoy that offering whenever and wherever they want, wherever they are in the world”.

“There are currently more than 2.5 billion people with smartphones in emerging markets who have a passion for cultural influences from around the globe and want access to the best entertainment content available easily and reliably. It is our aim to make iflix available to each and every one of them,” he added.

Sky group CFO Andrew Griffith said that since his company had invested US$45 million into iflix last year, he had seen the latter “surpass its milestones, including consolidating its leading market position in Southeast Asia and expanding its footprint into new regions”.