HMVOD - The next Netflix growing up before our eyes

HMVOD - The next Netflix growing up before our eyes

The enforced digitisation of the world during the pandemic drove the likes Amazon, Google and Netflix to new highs. Netflix has seen subscriber numbers rocketed in 2020. According to Netflix results, almost 16 million people created accounts in the first three months of 2020, doubling the new sign-ups it saw in the final months of 2019. HMVOD (HKSE:8103), which shares the similar business model to Netflix, has a current market valuation of HK$200 million (approximately USD$25.8 million). It implies a huge upside potential when compared to the market valuation of Netflix, which is approximately US$20 trillion.

There are numerous over-the-top ("OTT") media service platforms over the world which offer streaming media service directly to viewers via the Internet. As all activities remains shut, most notably theatres, it makes the digital platforms so savvy and shape the future of human entertainment. According to Statista report Jan 2021, OTT media revenue worldwide is expected to reach US$158.84 billion by 2024. Among all OTT platforms, Amazon Prime, Disney+, HBO Max, Netflix and Peacock are the largest players in the market.

What makes HMVOD stand out from the fierce competition?

Different from other OTT platforms, HMVOD has the largest numbers of Hong Kong movies available on its platform including classic Bruce Lee's, Jackie Chan's, Chow Yun-fat's and Stephen Chow's movies. Hong Kong movies have long been very popular and attracted a large audience around the world. Famous American director Quentin Tarantino (Kill Bill), James Gunn (Guardians of the Galaxy) and Korean director Yeon Sang-ho (Train to Busan) are all big fans of Hong Kong movie. Instead of running with the crowd, HMVOD places the emphasis on getting the licenses to make most if not all of the Hong Kong movies available on its platform. Difficulties in obtaining the licenses set a very high entry barrier to its competitors and make HMVOD remain competitive.

According to Nielsen's Total Audience Report Feb 2020, the top four reason as to why survey participants decided to subscribe to additional streaming services were all content-based, with the top reason being to expand the content that they had available. Instead of competing directly with the industry giants, HMVOD offers the largest number of Southeast Asian movies, Hong Kong movies and dramas which are not available in other OTT giants. The availability of these content will definitely skyrocket HMVOD's growth.

Meanwhile, Tencent Music Entertainment Group (NYSE:TME), a leading online music entertainment platform in China, is actively seeking a secondary listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange raising up to US$3.5 billion according to Nikkei Asia. Its market valuation has climbed more than 50% over the past year and reached US$35 billion. With Tencent Music and HMVOD are both OTT service providers, the valuation of Tencent Music after its secondary listing in HK will certainly offer high reference value for investors when evaluating HMVOD.