Scaling a media brand globally isn’t just about reach or resources — it’s about clarity of purpose. In a crowded, hyper-competitive streaming landscape, Viaplay Group has taken a different path, one rooted in identity, adaptability and partnership rather than brute-force expansion. In a recent conversation with Vicki Lins, president and CEO of CTAM, Vanda Rapti, executive vice president of Viaplay Select and content distribution at Viaplay Group, offered a clear guiding principle behind the company’s international strategy:
“My key approach in business and in life is turning challenges into opportunities.”
That mindset has shaped how Viaplay approaches everything from brand building and content distribution to partnerships and windowing strategies — and offers valuable lessons for media leaders navigating global growth today.
Overall takeaways: What Viaplay’s strategy gets right
At a high level, Viaplay’s global approach underscores three leadership truths that resonate far beyond the Nordics:
- Lead with identity, not imitation: Viaplay didn’t try to mimic global streaming giants. Instead, it leaned into its Nordic and European storytelling DNA as a clear differentiator.
- Collaborate to win: Strategic partnerships with local streamers and aggregators often outperform costly, standalone expansion.
- Balance short-term gains with long-term value: Full exclusivity isn’t always the optimal path. In many cases, shared windows can increase awareness, engagement and brand equity over time.
These themes come together in a strategy that prizes flexibility, realism and mutual value creation.
The leadership mindset
Global expansion comes with no shortage of challenges, such as cultural differences, regulatory complexity, entrenched competitors and escalating content costs. For Viaplay, the answer wasn’t to minimize these challenges, but to reframe them.
Rather than pursuing a traditional “global brand everywhere” strategy, Viaplay asked a different question: What are we uniquely good at, and how can that travel?
That reframing unlocked opportunity. Instead of treating scale as the primary objective, Viaplay focused on relevance, efficiency and leverage. The result is a model that prioritizes sustainable growth over visibility for visibility’s sake.
Building a global brand without losing identity
In its home markets, the Nordics and the Netherlands, Viaplay is a fully integrated media powerhouse, operating streaming services, free and pay TV channels, sports rights and original content production. Internationally, however, the company deliberately chose not to replicate that model everywhere.
Instead, Viaplay amplifies what makes it distinct: award-winning Nordic and European storytelling.
This includes:
- Prestige dramas and thrillers
- Elevated true stories
- High-quality documentaries
- Character-driven narratives grounded in realism
Rather than stretching the brand thin, Viaplay treats its storytelling DNA as the brand itself.
“We take the strengths of who we are at home and apply them internationally,” Rapti explained.
In large markets like the US, that means targeting audiences who already value complex, European storytelling rather than trying to educate an entire market about the Viaplay name.
Strategic partnerships over pure scale
One of Viaplay’s most distinctive moves has been its emphasis on business-to-business partnerships, particularly through Viaplay Select — a curated, branded content destination embedded within partner platforms.
The idea was born from Rapti’s experience as a buyer and aggregator. From that vantage point, curated content brands offered clear benefits, including increased perceived value for consumers, efficient coverage of specific content needs and reduced curation and acquisition burdens.
Viaplay Select applies that logic globally. “We wanted to build a product that local partners can monetize significantly,” Rapti said.
For partners, Viaplay Select delivers a premium, marketable content destination, access to high-quality European storytelling and a cost-efficient way to strengthen their offering.
For Viaplay, it maximizes content investment and creates a scalable international footprint without requiring full direct-to-consumer expansion in every market.
It’s a classic win-win and a reminder that growth doesn’t always require ownership of the entire value chain.
Balancing licensing, distribution and brand value
In today’s rebundling environment, content strategy is rarely linear. Viaplay operates simultaneously across specialty subscription video-on-demand services, traditional content licensing and branded, curated offerings like Viaplay Select.
Rather than seeing these as competing priorities, Viaplay treats them as complementary.
One of the company’s key learnings is: full exclusivity doesn’t always maximize value.
In some markets, broad licensing — across free TV, pay TV and other streaming platforms — actually increases awareness and appreciation for content. When that same content later appears on a Viaplay service or within Viaplay Select, it often performs better precisely because audiences already recognize it.
“Availability on other platforms can be positive rather than negative,” Rapti noted.
This nuanced approach reflects a mature understanding of windowing, discovery and long-term brand lift.
Adaptability across markets
If there’s one word that defines Viaplay’s international strategy, it’s adaptability.
The company does not apply a one-size-fits-all model. Instead, some markets favor exclusive partnerships, while others support broad licensing and shared windows. Each territory balances subscription video-on-demand, distribution and branding differently.
In Germany, Poland, the UK and the US, Viaplay offers an add-on streaming service with thousands of hours of the best Nordic and European film and television, available through Prime Video Channels and other distribution partners. They all operate under different dynamics, and Viaplay adjusts its content and partners accordingly. “Every market varies, and we adapt our strategy accordingly.”
That flexibility has become a competitive advantage, allowing Viaplay to meet partners where they are while still protecting long-term content and brand value.
What this means for media leaders
Viaplay’s approach offers a compelling blueprint for leadership in today’s fragmented media ecosystem:
- Clarity beats scale: Know what makes your brand valuable and lead with it.
- Partnerships create leverage: Especially in markets where going it alone is costly and risky.
- Exclusivity is a tool, not a rule: Use it strategically, not reflexively.
- Adaptability is a strength: Markets evolve, and rigid strategies rarely survive.
Leadership for a changing media landscape
Leadership in today’s global media environment requires more than ambition. It demands vision, discipline and a willingness to rethink traditional models of growth and distribution.
By turning challenges into opportunities and by choosing collaboration over conquest, Viaplay has built a global strategy that is both pragmatic and distinctive.
In a business where bigger isn’t always better, Viaplay’s experience is a reminder that smarter often wins.
