Amazon Prime launches in Indonesia, Thailand and The Philippines, will invest in local content

Amazon‘s Prime Video service has launched in Indonesia, Thailand and The Philippines, with the technology company making investments in local content.

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Residents in the three countries will be able to sign up for a one-week free trial on the service starting today, August 1. Once the trial has expired, users will be offered a discounted rate of IDR59,000, THB149 and PHP149 PHP per month, valid till the end of the year.

The platform currently includes content that has been licensed locally alongside various popular Korean series and movies, as well as anime.

According to Variety, Amazon has already announced the development of original local content with the green-lighting of localised episodes of improvisational comedy series Comedy Island for Indonesia, Thailand and The Philippines. The company is also moving forward with original feature-length films and series in Indonesia and Thailand, with Joko Anwar set to helm Come & See Studios’ Seige At Thorn High and the Kamila Andini-written 4 Seasons in Java in development at Four Colour Films.

In Thailand, Shutter writer-director Banjong Pisanthanakun is developing a series titled Metal Casket, while Jungka Bangkok is set to produce an adaptation of Sal Kim’s Wattpad novel Three Idiots and A Ghost. Actor and model Ananda Everingham is also set to executive produce a series for the platform titled How to Fake It in Bangkok.

Global Amazon Originals like hit series The Boys and The Terminal List are also available on Prime Video in the three countries, with upcoming series like The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power slated to be released on the platform for Southeast Asian audiences. Prime Video will also release Ron Howard’s new movie based on the harrowing rescue mission of a football coach and 12 boys from a cave that took place in Chiang Rai, Thailand in 2018 titled Thirteen Lives on August 5.

A dramatised retelling of the same rescue is also due to premiere as a Netflix Original Series titled Thai Cave Rescue. Set to arrive on the streaming platform on September 22, the six-episode limited series will include exclusive insights from the kids who were trapped in the cave themselves.

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