The data, released by the Cable & Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia (Casbaa), illustrates that just 17.5 per cent of total regional TV adspend goes to pay-TV, representing advertising revenue of US$2.6 billion.
Casbaa chief executive officer Simon Twiston Davies, admitted that the figures made disappointing reading, with the sector now 10 years old in the region and penetration rates on the rise.
"Given 10 years of development, it is far from being entirely satisfactory," said Twiston Davies. "Given that we have an average penetration rate of 25 to 35 per cent, it is a little disappointing."
Jannie Poon, vice-president of corporate affairs at Star Group, said that while the figures were superficially disappointing, it was necessary to read to between the lines.
"We are not that happy but we can see the potential for growth," she said. "You have to look at what (the regional) universe means - for example China is a huge market, but the pay-TV segment is very small."
Penetration continues to grow at a rapid pace, with 190 million subscribers in total, and particularly high rates in India and China.
Despite these facts, however, Twiston Davies believes that the industry must overcome the challenge of promoting itself to clients and agencies.
"Purchasing a niche product such as multi-channel ad spend is a complex buy and not one that we as an industry has articulated as well as we might," he said. "In addition, the agency community has maybe been slower than it might have been to take up the opportunity."
Poon agreed, and said: "It's a chicken and egg situation. You have to reach a critical mass before you excite the agency, but if you want to target a very dedicated demographic, then pay TV serves the purpose."
Poon also noted that each market's specific conditions must be taken into account, be it "the regulatory environment or agencies' reluctance to use pay TV."
Twiston Davies added that the myriad effects of piracy continue to have an impact on adspend levels, singling out ad masking and under-reporting for particular attention.
"Ad masking has definitely played a role - in Taiwan, up to $20 million has gone missing in advertising, and that has damaged the value of our product," said Twiston Davies. "Under-reporting confuses the message in India and the Phillippines."
The data was compiled following a six-month consultation process with the region's leading pay-television channels, system operators, agencies and data providers.
"We are expecting our adspend percentage to go up as a result of this, as it does assist with the rates process," concluded Twiston Davies.