International expansion should follow measurable audience demand beyond familiar markets. Non-US series accounted for 56.9% of global series demand in 2025. For content owners and buyers, the opportunity is to identify which territories are gaining demand, which titles fit those audiences and how that interest contributes to subscriber acquisition and retention.
International content growth is moving beyond established regional markets
In 2025, markets outside the SPLATAM group became the majority source of global audience demand for its series for the first time. International audiences therefore belong in the initial assessment of content value, rather than being considered only after a title succeeds in established regional markets.
SPLATAM groups Spain, Portugal, the United States and eight Latin American markets: Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru and Venezuela.
That regional turning point sits within a broader shift. Non-US series increased their share of global series demand from 48.3% in 2022 to 58.4% in 2026 year to date. Average global demand for SPLATAM series was also 25% above its 2024 baseline in the 2026 year-to-date comparison.
These measures answer different questions. Global demand share shows how attention is distributed between US and non-US series. Growth in average demand shows how SPLATAM titles are performing, while the geographic split identifies where their demand originates. Together, they make the case for evaluating international potential before settling on a regional distribution strategy.
Where is international audience demand growing fastest?
East Asia, Turkey and the Nordics warrant closer attention because demand for SPLATAM series grew much faster there than in the traditional markets measured. These growth rates help prioritize investigation, but they do not establish which territory has the largest audience or highest revenue potential.
Across the 2024–2026 comparison, average demand increased 243% in Korea, 148% in Japan and 119% in China.
From 2024 to 2026 year to date, Turkey recorded 132% growth. Nordic increases ranged from 86% in Denmark to 105% in Norway, with Sweden, Iceland and Finland also registering strong growth.
The contrast with established markets is substantial. Over the 2024–2026 year-to-date period, demand grew 14.2% in Spain, 3.5% in Brazil and 2.6% in Mexico. It declined 6.9% in Colombia and 8.8% in Venezuela.
For distributors, the implication is to distinguish established demand from incremental growth. Familiar territories may remain commercially important without being the strongest sources of new demand. Faster-growing markets deserve a title-level review before sales priorities or marketing budgets are assigned.DEMAND360’s country-level title rankings support that next step, helping buyers and sellers move from a broad territory shortlist to specific content opportunities.
Export growth also changes the competitive context at home
International expansion does not remove the need to compete effectively in domestic markets. In 2025, imported series accounted for more than 85% of demand in most of the SPLATAM markets compared, with Brazil, Colombia and Spain the exceptions. Content selection therefore needs to consider foreign competition alongside local performance.
A commissioning strategy based only on domestic comparables can miss the imported titles competing for the same audience. Equally, a distribution strategy based only on existing regional relationships can overlook demand developing elsewhere.
The practical response is to assess both sides of the trade: what audiences at home are choosing from abroad, and where audiences overseas are responding to regional content.
Established IP provides a useful international content selection signal
Existing intellectual property deserves a place in international content selection because it is disproportionately represented among high-demand series. Its value still needs to be tested at the level of the property and target market. Recognizable source material is a useful screening signal, not sufficient evidence to approve a project.
IP-based titles represent about 13% of new series premieres but 45% of the top 100 most in-demand series in Parrot Analytics’ comparison.
Within SPLATAM, literary adaptations registered 3.0 times the global demand of non-IP-based titles. Series based on true stories registered 2.9 times, while franchise extensions registered 2.3 times.
For investors and commissioners, these findings support examining adaptations and extensions as part of an international slate. They do not establish that adaptation itself causes higher demand, or that any particular rights price is justified.
The next question is whether the individual property’s audience demand supports the intended markets. Category-level performance helps build a shortlist; property-level evidence should inform the decision.
Demand-versus-supply analysis can narrow the export opportunity
Genre opportunity depends on the relationship between audience demand and available supply, not simply the size of an existing catalog. Strong demand alongside relatively few titles can justify closer investigation than a heavily supplied category with weaker demand. This comparison helps narrow an international acquisition or development shortlist.
In the 2026 year-to-date global analysis of SPLATAM titles, children’s programming, animation and science fiction occupy the high-demand, low-supply quadrant. Comedy has a large supply share and sits in the low-demand, high-supply quadrant.
For buyers, these patterns identify categories to examine in prospective territories. For producers, they offer a reason to look beyond the genres occupying the largest share of regional output.
The distinction between global and local evidence matters here. A global supply gap does not establish that the same gap exists in every market. Territory-level demand and title availability should determine where to act.
Parrot Analytics’ subscriber estimates show how content contributes to platform value
Subscriber acquisition and retention provide different tests of content value. A title can attract new customers, contribute to renewals or do both. Evaluating those contributions separately gives buyers a more useful basis for catalog decisions than treating all audience attention as if it served the same business objective.
Parrot Analytics’ Content Valuation analysis connects individual titles to acquisition and retention contributions. Five examples illustrate the scale and mix of those contributions across platforms.
Estimated global subscriber contributions by title
Renewal contributions exceed acquisition contributions in all five examples. That matters for international content buyers: a title can make a meaningful catalog contribution through its role in retaining subscribers, even when its acquisition contribution is smaller.
These are global estimates, not a geographic breakdown of the demand growth in East Asia or the Nordics. The differing measurement periods also mean they should not be treated as a like-for-like ranking. Subscriber contribution is evidence of a title’s economic role, rather than a standalone calculation of profitability.
Build international expansion around market-specific evidence
International expansion becomes more actionable when executives connect market selection, content selection and economic contribution. Growth data identifies territories to investigate. Title and genre analysis narrows the opportunities. Acquisition and renewal estimates clarify a title’s role in a platform’s business. No single measure answers all three questions.
- Rights owners and distributors should examine where demand is developing beyond established sales territories, then prioritize titles and distribution opportunities within those markets.
- Platforms and commissioners should assess imported competition and supply gaps, with a clear objective for each acquisition: attracting subscribers, supporting renewals or both.
- Investors should look for a supported connection between the proposed markets, the content and its expected commercial role, rather than treating global popularity as proof of returns.
A market that looks peripheral in a regional sales plan may already be central to a title’s audience. International strategy should be built to detect that mismatch.
Next steps:
- Download our presentation from Iberseries.
- Explore Parrot Analytics’ DEMAND360 to compare audience demand across titles and markets.
- Contact the Parrot Analytics team to discuss international content opportunities for your business.
