Japan‘s premium streaming sector grew 15% in 2025 to hit revenues of $7.2B, according to Media Partners Asia (MPA).
A combination of an expansion of ad-supported tiers, more local content, and live events and sports increased the money-making opportunities, per the Japan Online Video Consumer Insights & Analytics report released today by MPA and its proprietary measurement platform AMPD.
Sitting atop the pile in terms of revenue is Netflix, which commands a 22% share of the premium video-on-demand space, with U-Next being the leading local player with 12%. Netflix, Prime Video U-Next took a combined 50% of the category.
Overall, the sector added four million subscribers in 2025, to reach an overall 67.3 million. Prime Video remains the largest streamer in Japan by subs base, with 19.3 million, and was just ahead of Netflix in terms of hours watched. It accounted for 22% of the 8.1 billion hours watched, with Netflix 1% back, though ad-supported streamer TVer was the most-watched with 23%.
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U-Next was further back with 7%, as Hulu Japan and Disney+, which teamed to bundle their offers, grew to 5% and 3%, respectively. DAZN’s move to bundle into NTT Docomo’s Ahamo Max mobile plan was also attributed with adding subs to Japanese streaming.
MPA noted Netflix commanded the most user engagement, with the average viewer spending nearly 20 hours on the service.
Last year, Netflix co-CEO Greg Peters said Japanese titles on the platform have been viewed for a cumulative 25 billion hours, making them the second most-watched form of non-English content globally.
Genre breakdown
In terms of genre, Japanese drama was the top performer, reaching 73% of viewers and accounting for 37% of hours viewed. Given its global popularity, it’s little surprise that anime was also a critical factor, with local series Spy x Family the most-streamed title in Q4 2025. Anime had reach of 50% and accounted for 26% of hours.
TVer’s viewing was mainly driven by live-action series and variety shows, while Netflix’s original series Last Samurai Standing and Prime Video’s Love Transit were among the shows cited as driving viewing.
International series and films continue to play a key local role, with tentpoles Wicked, A Minecraft Movie and Stranger Things remaining popular. U.S. titles accounted for 22% reach and 6% of hours, while Korean content came in at 22% and 8% by the same measurements.
MPA pointed to coming effect of “high-impact event viewing,” noting Netflix’s deal to acquire exclusive local rights to the 2026 World Baseball Classic and TVer’s Winter Olympics coverage. U-Next has also been aggressively pushing into sports by acquiring women’s golf majors and the English Premier League.
“Japan’s premium VOD market has reached a critical maturation point. Growth is no longer just about net adds, but sophisticated monetization through ad-tier yields, telco bundling, and vertically integrated ecosystems,” said Dhivya T, Lead Analyst and Head of Insights at MPA.
“The entry of major players like Netflix into live sports and the continued dominance of local anime and drama suggest that the next phase of competition will hinge on event-driven engagement and premium local storytelling.”