Ahead of Viaplay’s first presence on the show floor at Asia TV Forum, Vanda Rapti weighs in on building interest in Nordic storytelling in the region and opportunities to partner with platforms for Viaplay Select.
Rapti is EVP of Viaplay Select & Content Distribution at Viaplay Group.
What led to Viaplay’s attendance at ATF this year?
ATF is one of the most dynamic marketplaces in Asia, especially when it comes to collaboration between operators, streamers, and international content providers. This year felt like the right moment for us to be here. We’re seeing a real shift toward curated streaming bundles and a growing appetite for distinctive international storytelling.
For us, ATF is a chance to meet partners face‑to‑face, get a better sense of their needs and aspirations, and how we can best add meaningful value to their business within these fast‑moving ecosystems. It’s also an opportunity to highlight our role as the leading global distributor of Nordic content—representing and curating the best shows from all commissioning platforms and broadcasters of the region.
How have you seen your signature slate of Nordic noir, true crime and sports docs perform in the region? Are there any themes or cultural sensibilities that are resonating with local audiences?
In the region, on one hand, there is an intense focus on local content, and on the other, there is an increasing engagement with distinct storytelling, emotional complexity, and social realism—qualities that sit at the heart of Nordic crime and drama. Strangely but truly, this naturally aligns with many Asian viewing traditions, where character, morality, and family dynamics carry real narrative weight.
Nordic noir, true crime, and sports documentaries are where we shine, and all have grown their audiences, particularly among younger viewers, including mobile‑first viewers who gravitate toward high‑impact, real‑world narratives and distinctive personalities. Asia is one of the most advanced regions globally when it comes to mobile viewing: on‑the‑go consumption, and binge‑watching all amplify the reach of our stories.
We’re also seeing what I’d call a “genre proximity effect”: when themes mirror familiar cultural dynamics—justice, loyalty, social pressure, moral dilemmas—engagement climbs significantly. That emotional resonance is ultimately what travels.
Tell us about the positioning of Viaplay Select in Asia. What have you learned from your existing partnerships and how are you looking to scale this footprint?
Viaplay Select has established itself as a premium, plug-and-play SVOD layer that helps partners stand out in competitive markets. Our collaborations with WOWOW in Japan, LGU+ in South Korea, Mola TV in Indonesia (before their closure) and SBS in Australia have shown that curated Nordic and European content brings value to local platforms. We’ve also learned that partners’ needs vary widely across markets, which has helped us refine and adapt our offering to better support their individual goals.
Another key learning—which is the premise of our service from the U.S. to smaller markets—is embracing our specialty SVOD component. With endless availability of content and global players shifting toward broader shows, audiences and our clients appreciate a clear sense of what they’re getting—a consistent editorial promise and a distinctive way of storytelling that resonates with them.
With bundling models accelerating across Asia, we see strong potential to scale with both operators and regional streamers looking to add a distinctive international tier. We deliver exactly that—a sharp, curated offering that strengthens our partners’ propositions and without the operational complexity.
How does this curated content help the local platforms you’ve aligned with differentiate themselves against the global platforms?
Local platforms are at their strongest when they offer a clear point of view. Our curated selection gives partners a premium, cohesive content layer that complements their local strategies while adding something genuinely different. Rather than competing on volume, they stand out through taste, curation, and storytelling nuance—providing subscribers with a recognisable, premium niche that global platforms don’t typically foreground. In crowded markets, that sense of identity and distinction becomes powerful.
How does Viaplay measure the success and ROI of a Viaplay Select deal in a region like Asia, especially in terms of building long-term brand equity for Nordic and European content?
For us, success has three dimensions. partner value—how our curated content enhances retention, engagement, and perceived premium value within bundles or platforms; audience traction—viewing patterns, completion rates, and growth across key genres; brand equity—how Nordic storytelling become recognised and trusted in new markets, and how including Viaplay in a bundle or within a leading local streaming service increases the value perception of our partners’ offerings.
Long-term, our goal is to build deep familiarity with Nordic and European content. The journey of a format like The Bridge—adapted regionally and then re-exported—shows how powerful that accumulated equity can be.
Microdrama is dominating Asian viewing habits in many markets; how are you looking at this space at Viaplay?
We’re observing the rise of microdrama with great interest, and it’s sparking many ideas. It’s an innovative space with clear momentum in Asia, though it’s not part of our current slate. We’re exploring ways to repurpose content by re-editing long-form shows into microdramas, focusing on series and features with strong emotional hooks, cliffhangers, and well-defined character arcs.
