As competition in China’s domestic mini-drama market intensifies, Southeast Asia continues to be the core growth market for Chinese short dramas going global. Research by DataEye and other institutions shows that in 2025, Chinese mini-drama apps accounted for roughly 90% of downloads in Southeast Asia, with an even higher share of in-app purchase revenue. Combining in-app purchases, advertising, subscriptions and social media channels, the Southeast Asian mini-drama industry reached approximately US$390 million in 2025, and some institutions project it could rise further to around US$510 million in 2026.
The market shows a pattern of “dual leadership in revenue and downloads”: DramaBox and others stand out in in-app purchase revenue, while Melolo and others lead in downloads with free-to-watch models. At the same time, the download share of local apps is rising, with several local products climbing into the top of the download charts—a sign that the market is rapidly transitioning from “localized imports topping the charts” to “the rise of local dramas.”
On the content and technology front, AI translation, AI dubbing and multilingual versioning allow a single title to reach Indonesian-, Thai- and Vietnamese-language markets more quickly. Sustainable growth, however, increasingly depends on local screenwriters, local settings and local distribution networks. Industry consensus is also evolving: going global is shifting from being “hit-driven” to “ecosystem building”—including local teams, copyright mechanisms, business models that combine free, ad-supported viewing with paid content, and collaboration with open platforms such as TikTok and YouTube Shorts.
HESHU Insight: Southeast Asia is no longer merely a testing ground for “trial runs after translation,” but a key battleground that will shape global market share. For teams with in-house production, co-production and multilingual distribution capabilities, the next step is not to open more channel accounts, but to turn the strong, plot-driven storytelling proven in China into a content supply chain that genuinely fits local life and language—and to scale up distribution efficiently while ensuring compliance and clear copyright ownership.