International Sensation: Singapore's Hit Series, Emerald Hill, Expands Globally
In the bustling city-state of Singapore, the content industry has experienced remarkable growth over the past few years. This surge is evident in the increased volume of titles released, the enhanced international visibility, and the significant growth in digital advertising and online presence.
One of the key factors contributing to this growth is the digital-first approach that Singaporean producers have adopted. For instance, the Singaporean drama series Emerald Hill - The Little Nyonya Story, produced by Mediacorp, has been picked up by Dragon TV, extending its reach to over 360 million monthly viewers across China. This spin-off of the 2008 classic The Little Nyonya became the most-watched Chinese-language drama in Singapore in five years, drawing 1.67 million viewers and topping Netflix Singapore's Top 10 for four consecutive weeks. Emerald Hill is also distributed across Malaysia (Astro), Taiwan (TVBS, friDAY), Southeast Asia on Netflix, and globally via Singapore Airlines' KrisWorld.
The success of Emerald Hill is part of a broader trend that has been tracked by various digital marketing and SEO sources. Singapore's content industry, particularly in digital advertising and online presence, experienced significant growth between 2021 and 2024. By 2024, total advertising expenditure rose by 7.8% to $2.60 billion USD, with digital ad spend increasing by 11% to $1.94 billion USD, making digital advertising about 74.6% of all ad expenditure in Singapore.
This surge reflects strong brand recognition of the importance of online presence, supported by heavy investment in online search ads ($706 million USD) and banner ads ($527 million USD), which are key for customer engagement and brand building. Influencer advertising accounted for a relatively small 5.5% of digital spend, indicating a unique market characteristic where audiences may be less influenced by endorsements compared to other regions.
Singapore's highly connected population, with internet penetration reaching around 91-96%, and mobile connections increasing by 4.9% in early 2025, underpins this growth. The dominant use of mobile devices demands a mobile-first approach for content and SEO strategies to maintain and expand visibility, especially since Google's search engine commands nearly 90% of the market share there.
During the COVID-19 period, 77% of Singaporean consumers increased their social media usage, with platforms like TikTok seeing the highest adoption growth. Content preferences have shifted towards short, relatable, humorous, and socially conscious formats aimed at younger demographics like Gen Z and millennials who spend up to a third of their day online.
The growth in the content industry is not limited to digital platforms alone. Across the last four years (2021-2024), there has been steady growth in both output and international readiness among Singaporean producers. By 2024, the top three producers in Singapore were MM2, Mediacorp, and Volos Films, following a shift from Mediacorp, Akanga, and Warner Bros. Discovery in 2021, and Mediacorp, Channel 8, and The Moving Visuals Co. in 2023.
Our website, a leading resource for discovering, evaluating, and connecting with precision in the Film & TV industry, provides daily-updated project tracking, deep profiling of regional producers, and verified access to over 3 million global execs. It offers industry briefings trusted by leaders, including the Production Financing Outlook from Quarterly Results of Netflix, BBC, Banijay, and more. The website also tracks global Film & TV projects, partners, and deals, which are used to find vendors, financiers, commissioners, licensors, and licensees. It discusses Micro-Dramas & Mobile-First Storytelling, focusing on who is creating and who is buying in the short-form content market.
Moreover, the website provides a Global TV+Film Productions Review for each month, detailing renewals, co-productions, and quiet drops. It examines Watch Time Wars: YouTube's Expansion and Strategic Implications for SVOD, discussing YouTube's role as a platform and its impact on SVOD services.
In conclusion, Singapore's content industry growth from 2021 to 2024 highlights a market that is digitally advanced, investment-heavy in online ads, and characterized by evolving consumer preferences that impact both local and international digital visibility. This growth is underpinned by a highly connected population and a shift towards social media and mobile-first content consumption.
- The success of shows like Emerald Hill, which is distributed across multiple countries and streaming platforms, is a testament to the growth of the movies-and-tv sector in Singapore, as well as the entertainment industry as a whole.
- The digital marketing and SEO data indicates that Singapore's content industry, including movies-and-tv, has experienced significant growth between 2021 and 2024, driven by heavy investment in online advertising, a mobile-first approach, and evolving consumer preferences.
