International Broadcasts: Myanmar Cambodia Laos Cambodian

International broadcasts[edit]
Prior to the 2000's, Thai TV soap operas were primarily popular in neighbouring countries such
as Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos.[15] Several Cambodian television channels aired Thai soap operas
instead of their local ones. Dao Pra Sook was the most popular series for Khmer viewers.
Occasionally, due to historical conflicts between the neighbouring countries, the content of these
television programs would lead to offline political conflicts. For example, a plot line
concerning Angkor Wat led to riots at the Thai embassy in Cambodia and Thai lakorn were banned
in early–2003.[16] However, but 2015, Thai content rapidly returned to popularity amongst Cambodian
viewers and while they're mainly viewed on online platforms, many television stations were also
broadcasting Thai dramas.[17]
Apart from their immediate neighbours, Thai dramas have become increasingly popular in other
Southeast Asian countries. Over the years, several Thai TV soap operas have begun to become
popular in Singapore as Nang Tard and Love Destiny aired successfully in that country. They are
usually broadcast in Singapore one or two weeks after airing in Thailand, primarily on
Mediacorp's Channel 8 and Channel U. In 2020, Mediacorp announced that they will be airing a
comprehensive set of Thai television content to their streaming platforms with English & Mandarin
subtitling option.[18] Several Thai hit series have also been broadcast on major national television
channels in Malaysia, Indonesia (Rajawali TV), and Vietnam (VTV1).[19] Likewise, Thai content have
also gained considerable following in the Philippines, with numerous Thai series such as 2Gether
the Series and The Gifted regularly topping Twitter trends in the country. [20] In 2018, GMA announced
that they will be broadcasting more Thai series and exploring collaboration options for production
and talent development.[21] ABS-CBN have also announced that they will be airing multiple Thai
series on the Kapamilya channel and their streaming platform, as well as further partnership with
GMMTV.[22][23] Filipino newspaper Daily Tribune stated that "Thai lakorn (“television play”),...is slowly
inching its way to the top of the tier." [24]
Outside Southeast Asia, Thai television content have also gained popularity in the broader Asian
region, particularly China and Japan. In the 2000's, many Thai soap operas are aired in China,
dubbed into Chinese language. [25] With the advent of online and digital media, Thai television content
continued to gain popularity in China through word of mouth and viral hits on social networking sites
such as Bilibili & Weibo. By the late 2010's, Thai content became a mainstay in Chinese streaming
platforms, with led to many Chinese companies forming partnerships and collaborating with Thai
production companies, such as iQIYI forming a partnership with RS Television to remake Thai
content for Chinese audiences. [26][27] Over the years, numerous Thai series were adapted and remade
for Chinese audiences through such collaborations, such as Project S: The Series & My Husband in
Law.[28][29] In 2011, Thai dramas quickly became popular in China, with a high performance-price-ratio,
passing South Korean dramas as the second most popular country of origin for foreign shows in
China, following Hong Kong dramas.[30] The rise of Thai entertainment in China have had an effect in
other aspects of Thai-China relations, with Thai dramas credited as being partially responsible for
the popularity of Thailand as a tourism destination amongst Chinese travellers and being
consistently awarded as 'Weibo's most popular destination' award. [31][32]
Meanwhile in Japan, Thai dramas experienced a boom in 2020, with Yahoo Japan stating that "the
Thai wave is coming after the Korean wave." [33] While the initial boom was led by Thai BL dramas
such as 2Gether and SOTUS, the introduction of Thai entertainment to the Japanese market let
Japanese consumers to explore other Thai entertainment content as well. [34] After months of
sustained popularity, TV Asahi announced a business partnership with GMMTV to "deliver fresh and
stellar Thai content to the Japanese market and further unlock the great potential 'Thai style'
entertainment holds".[35]
With its rising popularity, numerous streaming platforms such as Netflix, Line TV and WeTV have
purchased Thai content to stream to global audiences. [36] Aside from airing the content, many of the
streaming platforms have also formed partnership with Thai production houses to develop their own
original content for their platforms.[37]
Thai soap operas are available in Nepal alongside English language, Hindi, Korean and Chinese
dramas.[38]
Thai soap operas are available to stream with subtitles on Iflix in Sri Lanka.[39]
Recently, a historical romantic drama set in the Ayutthaya Kingdom Love Destiny (2018) became hit
across countries including Russia.

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