JAKARTA: Vice Media, the North American digital media business, is launching a full-scale operation in Indonesia as it seeks to tap into the country's huge population of younger consumers.
Half of Indonesia's 249m-strong population is aged between 18 and 34 and the average person spends five hours a day on the internet, making it a good fit for the youth-oriented media brand, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
"With Indonesia's massive young audience increasingly consuming video content across all screens, launching Vice here is a no brainer," said Vice co-president James Schwab in a statement.
A partnership with local television network Jawa Pos TV will see Vice News Tonight, a daily news show, aired every evening along with selected VICELAND programming. And, in a second partnership with Google, VICE will create digital content and social events with local talent, showcasing youth culture and nightlife across the country.
"The country is a diverse, complicated, and incredibly exciting place that is full of under-covered stories, unique characters, and young people hungry for compelling content," added Ardyan M. Erlangga, Vice's new managing editor for Indonesia.
Last year Warc published Demystifying Indonesia, a series of articles that explores the contradictions and idiosyncrasies of the world's fourth largest nation by population.
This noted that, though Indonesia is modern and outward looking – it is one of the most social media-connected countries in the world – societal change happens slowly and that successful brands have relied on promoting traditional values, sometimes in the face of change.
And while Vice believes that its young, digitally savvy audience is best reached via the internet and video content, new research from Nielsen shows that radio continues to attract a sizeable - and growing - audience among younger Indonesian consumers.
The research firm's latest Radio Audience Measurement survey found that radio was the fourth most popular form of media in the third quarter of this year, behind television, static outdoor media and the internet in terms of audience.
And, the Jakarta Globe reported, more than half of the radio listeners were from the younger end of the age spectrum, with Gen Z and Millennials spending an average of over two hours a day listening to radio content or more than 16 hours a week, up on the equivalent figure for this time last year.
Half of Indonesia's 249m-strong population is aged between 18 and 34 and the average person spends five hours a day on the internet, making it a good fit for the youth-oriented media brand, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
"With Indonesia's massive young audience increasingly consuming video content across all screens, launching Vice here is a no brainer," said Vice co-president James Schwab in a statement.
A partnership with local television network Jawa Pos TV will see Vice News Tonight, a daily news show, aired every evening along with selected VICELAND programming. And, in a second partnership with Google, VICE will create digital content and social events with local talent, showcasing youth culture and nightlife across the country.
"The country is a diverse, complicated, and incredibly exciting place that is full of under-covered stories, unique characters, and young people hungry for compelling content," added Ardyan M. Erlangga, Vice's new managing editor for Indonesia.
Last year Warc published Demystifying Indonesia, a series of articles that explores the contradictions and idiosyncrasies of the world's fourth largest nation by population.
This noted that, though Indonesia is modern and outward looking – it is one of the most social media-connected countries in the world – societal change happens slowly and that successful brands have relied on promoting traditional values, sometimes in the face of change.
And while Vice believes that its young, digitally savvy audience is best reached via the internet and video content, new research from Nielsen shows that radio continues to attract a sizeable - and growing - audience among younger Indonesian consumers.
The research firm's latest Radio Audience Measurement survey found that radio was the fourth most popular form of media in the third quarter of this year, behind television, static outdoor media and the internet in terms of audience.
And, the Jakarta Globe reported, more than half of the radio listeners were from the younger end of the age spectrum, with Gen Z and Millennials spending an average of over two hours a day listening to radio content or more than 16 hours a week, up on the equivalent figure for this time last year.
Data sourced from Jakarta Globe, Hollywood Reporter; additional content by Warc staff
