Japan's Netflix contender bets on youth-driven viral hits by SamNusseyRTRS
TOKYO - On a Friday night at a downtown Tokyo television studio, 12 teen models with cutesy nicknames like Ayamin and Kyokyo are waiting nervously to find out who has won coveted spots on the cover of Popteen magazine, a Japanese fashion bible.
Eschewing the pricy serials and star-studded films that have helped companies like Netflix upend the traditional TV business in the U.S., AbemaTV is betting on low-budget, reality-based fare with colorful graphics, relatable young faces and a relentless focus on generating social media buzz. Japan’s traditional broadcasters, boxed in by government regulations and concerned about upsetting their regional stations, have mostly left the internet field clear for upstarts like AbemaTV and foreign players like Netflix and Amazon.com.
And the overseas players continue to make inroads: In addition to subtitling their large back catalogues, they are offering a growing library of local-language content such as Netflix’s “Terrace House.” AbemaTV has around 8 million viewers each week. Goldman Sachs analyst Masaru Sugiyama sees the venture turning profitable next year and hitting 164 billion yen in revenue in 2024.
Japanese TV shows use lots of explanatory on-screen text, designed to capture viewers zapping between channels, along with wide shots of terraced rows of entertainers.AbemaTV hits include a variety show featuring former members of Japan’s once-biggest boy band, SMAP, and a dating show in which the female contestants and viewers try to identify which of the male contestants is a “wolf” lying to gain their affections.
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