MOSCOW, September 2. /TASS/. The partnership between Netflix and Russia’s National Media Group (NMG) will allow the service to double its share in the Russian market in the coming years through localization and an increase in the volume of Russian-language content, according to CEO of TelecomDaily Denis Kuskov.

"Netflix has excellent content, but more adaptation is needed for the Russian viewer," he told TASS on Wednesday. "If NMG helps in this, then Netflix's share can grow. In the next two to three years, the service can expect 7-8% of the market, if NMG is very actively helping. However, this year the share of Netflix is unlikely to change and will remain at 4%," he added.

Position on the online cinemas market is now determined by the volume of exclusive content and its localization, Head of Content Review Sergey Polovnikov said. According to him, the growth of services such as Okko, Start, and Premier is driven primarily by exclusives. Netflix is doing well with its own releases, but it lacks content for the Russian viewer, he believes.

"A partnership with NMG is an excellent option for Netflix, since NMG has stakes in TV channels, as well as rights to … a huge library of foreign, theatrical content, which Netflix lacked a bit, as the company mainly focuses on its own exclusives. It does not have many Russian movies, and a partnership with NMG can change this at the snap of a finger," Polovnikov told TASS.

Earlier on Wednesday, Netflix and NMG announced a partnership, which, among other things, will allow to localize the US service in Russia. The holding becomes the official operator of Netflix and will provide Russian viewers with access to Netflix service and content entirely in Russian. According to Broadband TV News, the Russian-language version of Netflix will appear in mid-October.