Many companies are struggling since the Movement Control Order (MCO) was implemented, and things are not looking too good since the announcement of an extention either.

However, content producers such as Astro Malaysia Holdings Berhad (Astro) is expected to be the exception, several studies shows.

Good content line-up

The Borneo Post reported that the increase in consumption of Astro's content can already be seen, and this may translate into more sales in the future.

Quoting a report by MIDF Amanah Investment Bank Bhd (MIDF Research), the article said that the company will benefit from the larger sales through Astro's multitude of platforms such as Astro Go, NJOI and Go Shop.


"Through our channel check with management, the current purchase of NJOI contents are 1.5 to two-fold of normal run rates since MCO which could positively contribute to average revenue per user (ARPU)," MIDF Research reportedly said.

It also stated that there has been an increase in the number of purchases on Go Shop, as well as an increase of 50,000 viewers on Astro Go since it was made free during the MCO period.

The research centre expects at least some of the viewers to become paid customers once the free viewing ends.


Another researcher, Kenanga Investment Bank Bhd, is also of similar opinion, saying that Astro's efforts in churning up new offerings such as the Ultra Box, partnership with iQIYI and bundling package with telcos allows its customers access to wider variety of content.

Kenanga Research, however, is of the opinion that Astro will still feel some of the negative effects of COVID 19 as it puts a dent in the company's customer aquisition.

Since Astro's strong point is also it's sports channels and many major sporting events has been cancelled or postpones, it's seasonal viewership might also be affected, the researchers opined.