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TVB group chief executive Mark Lee Po-on announces plans for myTV Super, a paid over-the-top platform targeting local audiences, in March 2016. Photo: Sam Tsang
Opinion
Opinion
by Helen So and Yolanda Lam
Opinion
by Helen So and Yolanda Lam

Hong Kong remains disconnected from a digital lifestyle befitting a modern city

  • A long overdue move to liberalise the city’s archaic broadcasting rules must be only the first step towards encouraging industry players to invest and innovate
  • Hong Kong needs an ecosystem that fully supports a digital lifestyle, where people can seamlessly socialise, shop and be entertained
Helen So
Yolanda Lam
Helen SoandYolanda Lam
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Those of us who stayed in over the long weekend will no doubt have noticed the adverts for “myTV Gold”, TVB’s online pay TV platform – that is, those of us who still watch TVB.

According to a survey by Nielsen, live television viewing is still predominant among Hong Kong viewers. But they are also consuming content across a spectrum of devices and platforms, particularly the so-called post-80s generations.

Government statistics show that, between 2009 and 2017, the percentage of people who had watched free-to-air TV in the previous month dropped from 96 per cent to 91 per cent, while the percentage who watched it daily dropped from 86.5 per cent to 71.8 per cent. Against this backdrop, it is no surprise that Hong Kong’s largest broadcaster is trying to transform its business model to stay competitive.

Broadcasters around the world have been trying to develop online platforms to diversify their offerings. The BBC launched its internet streaming service BBC iPlayer back in 2007, and HBO created its video-on-demand service HBO Go in 2010. Large broadcasters even formed joint ventures to create online services, such as POOQ by Korea’s KBS, MBC and SBS (2012), and BritBox by BBC and ITV (2017).

TVB, likewise, launched myTV Super back in 2016 – its own (paid) over-the-top (OTT) platform targeting local audiences. Later that year, it rolled out TVB Anywhere, a similar platform aimed at overseas Chinese communities. And then an upgraded myTV Gold platform was introduced last year, to feature early releases of the latest TVB dramas as well as OTT originals.

Despite TVB’s efforts and the growing subscription figures (myTV Super had 7.3 million subscribers as of March 2019, a 26 per cent increase from the 5.6 million recorded a year earlier), none of their initiatives have generated much enthusiasm.

Many attribute this to the city’s archaic broadcasting regulations for traditional media, which the government now hopes to liberalise. In 2018, it proposed to relax cross-media ownership restrictions and abolish the rule barring a subsidiary company from holding a conventional broadcasting licensee.

Has Hong Kong watched its last Olympics and World Cup?

These moves are long overdue, especially when compared to the United States, which back in the 1990s had already recognised the internet as a significant force and media cross-ownership a vital next step. Its Telecommunications Act of 1996 laid out the goal to “let anyone enter any communications business – to let any communications business compete in any market against any other”. Today, the US is home to the world’s largest media and entertainment sector.

Indeed, it cannot be denied that viewers’ digital media consumption today is often coupled with other online activities such as e-commerce. Knowing this, the government must strike an appropriate balance between innovation and regulation, to build a more comprehensive media and entertainment ecosystem.

A prime example that captures this zeitgeist is Tencent. The Chinese technology conglomerate adopts an integrated business model and divides its services into three categories: communications and social (WeChat), digital content (Tencent Video), and fintech services (WeChat Pay). These platforms penetrate people’s lives.

Xiaohongshu is another well-known mainland-based integrated platform that combines social media and e-commerce. With over 100 million active users, the platform is especially popular with the young female consumers raised on smartphones and mobile apps.

Here in Hong Kong, HKTV (Hong Kong Television Network Limited) comes to mind. Now enjoying massive success through its online shopping platform HKTV Mall, HKTV once had plans to become a broadcaster. Its ambition was to develop a “shoppertainment” model that prioritised free-TV services, with e-commerce acting only as a source of funding for the company.

But, after its failed bid to obtain a domestic free-to-air licence, HKTV abandoned its broadcasting dreams in 2018. If better policies had been in place to support players like HKTV, perhaps we would now be seeing more integrated platforms locally.
An interconnected digital lifestyle demands integrated and convenient platforms, enhanced user experiences and diverse content. The fact that TikTok is dominating headlines nowadays has demonstrated to us just how powerful digital media can be, so much so that it has become a key player in geopolitics.

When reviewing policies, the government needs to be bolder in removing barriers for industry players who want to adopt an integrated business model. Further amendments would certainly need to be made to regulations, to allow greater freedom for an integrated digital ecosystem.

Helen So is a member of the Advisory Committee on Arts Development, and the Museum Advisory Committee. Yolanda Lam is a recent graduate of the University of Cambridge, where she studied education with English and drama

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