In case you missed it, Hong Kong’s largest television company TVB has made its way to our shores. With a brand spanking new local office, TVB is setting its sights on Malaysia’s media industry. But what does this strategic move mean for the future of broadcast media in the country? We spoke to Desmond S.H Chan, General Manager of TVBI Company Limited on why Hong Kong’s television giant is making Malaysia a new base.
What is the main goal behind TVB’s business expansion to Malaysia?
The main goal is to strengthen our connection with Malaysians by producing more local content and by working with local production teams. We’ll also extend our service from the Chinese market to the Bahasa Malaysia market. By working closely with local production crew and talents, we’ll be able to customise content for our media partners, sponsors, advertisers and other business partners. We’d like to extend to other platforms as well such as print media, radio, new media platforms, telcos and so on.
Why do you think now is the best time for this expansion?
Malaysia needs to recover from the Covid 19 pandemic. TVB can help by creating new job opportunities, helping local businesses to increase their demand and attracting overseas shoppers, tourists and investors.
Why do you think Malaysia makes a strategic location?
TVB is a brand of quality and our content is popular in Malaysia. According to recent market research, TVB remains the top channel viewed by Chinese subscribers on Astro. In addition, TVB content attracts over 14 million viewership among Malaysians every month on YouTube. Also, Malaysia is not short of great local talent.
In the age of the 24-hour digital news cycle, what do you think is the role that television still plays in our age today?
Big screen television still matters to consumers, regardless if the content is transmitted via satellite or the internet. Today, big screen television can also deliver digital capabilities such as VOD, direct response and live interactions. Advertisers are also able to have a significant impact on consumers’ buying decisions.
After the challenges of the past few years, what can we look forward to when it comes to broadcasting?
While linear broadcasting remains important to a significant segment of the viewing public, the demand for streaming and on-demand services will keep increasing. That’s why apart from providing our programmes on linear channels in Malaysia, we also offer the TVB Anywhere service, which provides a huge amount of acclaimed programmes produced by TVB for viewers to select and watch anywhere, anytime.
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