April 19, 2024

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Korea’s telecom giant SK Telecom is pushing to team up with Singapore’s Singtel to mutually invest in their over-the-top subsidiaries, industry sources in Seoul said on March 10.

The partnership, which is currently under discussion, enables Singtel to invest in SKT’s OTT video service OKSUSU and Pooq, which offer programs from terrestrial TV channels, the companies said. In response, SKT will also invest in Singtel’s HOOQ.

SKT is currently seeking to produce major indigenous content based on investment from both home and abroad, including Singtel, worth 200 billion won (US$176 million), insiders familiar with the matter said.

The move would help it rival global content streaming services like YouTube and Netflix that have recently dominated the local market.

HOOQ, a joint venture among Sony Pictures, Warner Bros and Singtel, was established in 2015. It is Asia‘s first premium video-on-demand service to launch across the Southeast Asia region.

By Ram Garikipati and newswires (ram@heraldcorp.com)