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Digital Entertainment Booms, Gen Z Leads Content Creator Growth

Digital entertainment has now become part of everyday life, ranging from watching movies and series to listening to music and podcasts. All of these activities are easily accessible via mobile phones, a phenomenon often referred to as mobile entertainment. Social media has also become one of the most popular forms of digital entertainment.

To understand how Indonesians engage with mobile entertainment and social media, Jakpat conducted a survey in the first half of 2025 involving 2,259 respondents. The results show that 86% of respondents use social media platforms such as YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok. Other popular digital entertainment activities include listening to music on streaming platforms (56%) and playing games (51%). Two out of five people enjoy watching movies or series, while 23% listen to podcasts via streaming services.

“Consistent with previous periods, social media remains the most accessed entertainment platform, followed by other forms of entertainment media. Each year, the number of social media users continues to rise, in line with the growing number of teens and adults. This rising demand is also matched by the growth of content creators and influencers who deliver content that is entertaining, informative, and inspiring,” said Aska Primardi, Head of Research at Jakpat.

More specifically, 72% of respondents use over-the-top (OTT) services like Netflix, Vidio, and Disney+ Hotstar. Most users watch movies (85%), followed by series (68%) and cartoons or anime (45%). A smaller proportion also watch reality shows (22%), live sports broadcasts (20%), and live TV (15%). Three out of five OTT users typically spend 1–2 hours per session on these platforms.

By country of origin, the most-watched content comes from South Korea (69%), followed by Indonesia (65%) and the United States (48%). The most popular genres are action (65%), comedy (63%), and romance (61%). Although its user base dropped by 4% compared to the previous year, Netflix remains the most-used OTT platform at 61%, followed by Vidio with 32% of users.

Exploring the Role of Social Media in Digital Daily Life

Social media was also a popular form of mobile entertainment in the first half of 2025. WhatsApp, which also serves as an instant messaging app, was the most widely used platform—used by 9 out of 10 social media users. Other frequently accessed platforms include Instagram (78%) and YouTube (75%).

Interestingly, each generation views the value of social media differently. About 28% of Gen Z and 23% of Millennials consider Instagram the most informative platform (32%). In contrast, 24% of Gen X prefer TikTok as their primary information source.

Users search for a wide range of content on social media. The most popular topics include music, movies, or series (62%), culinary content (59%), and travel (54%). These types of content appeal strongly to Gen X, while cooking-related topics attract more interest from Millennials and Gen Z.

Before making purchase decisions, people often rely on reviews from those who have already used the product or service. Social media makes this easier by allowing users to freely share their opinions on their accounts.

Jakpat’s survey found that trust in reviews from various sources remains high. Professionals (89%), friends/family (86%), and product reviewers (86%) are the top three most trusted sources. Interestingly, celebrities (86%) and influencers (85%) also score nearly as high, showing that popularity still plays a major role in shaping public opinion in the digital space.

“The positive reception toward content creators and influencers is evident in several findings. First, Gen Z shows greater acceptance of content creators and influencers than older generations, as seen in their significantly higher trust scores,” Aska explained.

In addition, influencer accounts on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube are among the top five most followed accounts. “When we looked deeper, it turned out that most of the followers come from the Gen Z segment,” Aska added.