Did you think you could "Netflix and chill" worldwide? Nope. Not in Indonesia. At least not if you have Telekomunkasi. This is in spite of Netflix's attempts to grow worldwide, including into Indonesia.
Telekomunikasi Indonesia, which is the country's largest Internet provider, made the decision to block the company's excursions into the nation (at least onto the nation's largest Internet-provider) due in part to Netflix providing content which might compromise the "interests of society" due to potentially offensive material that the service provides to streamers. Things get more fascinating when Netflix began to argue that the existing regulations were made with T.V. and movies in mind and thus shouldn't apply to videos and video-streaming services.
Telekomunikasi isn't the only Internet provider in Indonesia, but it is the largest. And, according to some ex-patriots who live in Indonesia, it's also largely the best Internet provider. Additionally, Telekomunikasi is well aware that odds are many people won't leave the provider solely on the basis of Netflix.
Does having services within Indonesia benefit Netflix? Or would it? Not right now, given that despite Indonesia's 255,000,000 population there are an estimated 3,000,000 internet connections via. fixed broadband methods. But in the future, it definitely could. If Indonesia manages to expand internet access, with the support of the U.S. Embassy, and with Google's help, then many of the inhabitants of the country could gain access to the Internet by 2025 and then it would be a massive market for Netflix, providing just over a quarter of a billion potential customers to the video-streaming site. To put that in perspective, there are currently roughly 44.74 million subscribers to Netflix in the United States, according to Statista. While it is highly unlikely that the number of subscribers to Netflix from Indonesia would match the number in the U.S.A., it would still be a massive market for the company. It's easy to see why Netflix would look at Indonesia with dollar signs in their eyes, providing they manage to come to a compromise with the nation's government.
Indonesia is a fascinating country, and the days to come will help determine the relationship between Netflix and the nation. It's entirely possible that the Indonesian government could gain a powerful ally if they partner with the company, and use it as an opportunity to expand Indonesia's film industry, and to help expand internet access throughout the country. Indonesian cinema exists, and this partnership between the government of Joko Widodo, and Netflix's Kelly Bennett, could strengthen international access to Indonesian cinema and thus create more jobs for potential actors and actresses throughout the nation. This is important, as in 2014 only 113 Indonesian films got into theaters throughout the country. Netflix could help revive Indonesia's film industry. The only question is, can a partnership be achieved?
