<p>Last week, I shared my experiences hosting &#34;Trading Live&#34; on TVB and the rise and fall of financial programs on television, which sparked a lot of responses from friends and readers. Just this past Tuesday, both local television stations had performance-related news, so let's take this opportunity to analyze the latest developments in the local television industry.</p>
<h2>TVB Profit Alert, ViuTV's Performance Improvement in the Second Half</h2>
<p>Television Broadcasts Limited (511) issued a profit alert, expecting last year's EBITDA to exceed HKD 350 million, an increase of at least 18% compared to 2024, with overall performance turning from loss to profit, and net profit expected to exceed HKD 50 million. On the other hand, ViuTV's parent company, PCCW Limited (008), announced its annual results, revealing that its free television and related businesses had an EBITDA of HKD 153 million, a year-on-year decline of 20%. While this seems disappointing, a closer analysis shows that the decline in EBITDA actually occurred in the first half of the year, with growth already recovering in the second half. One reason for this is the focus on personal concerts during the year. The company expects to hold a series of group concerts this year, which is anticipated to boost the financial performance of its free television business.</p>
<h2>TVB Focuses on Advertising Over Artists</h2>
<p>Reading the announcements from both companies reveals that the business focuses of the two television stations are quite different. Television Broadcasts Limited continues to emphasize growth in advertising revenue, particularly due to the popularity of the major drama &#34;Queen of News 2&#34; at the end of last year, which drove advertising revenue growth. However, the reality is that &#34;one day may not guarantee supremacy.&#34; In the fourth quarter, the combined viewership ratings of TVB's free television channels during prime time were only 20.1 points, a decline of 0.3 points quarter-on-quarter and a significant drop of 1.1 points year-on-year. It is believed that a viewership rating of 20 points is an important psychological threshold for management, and if it falls below this, advertisers will have reasons to push for lower prices.</p>
<p>Another observation I have about TVB is regarding its artists. In the past, advertisers often used TVB artists for television commercials, as they were expected to attract viewers' attention. However, recently, there have not been many advertisements featuring TVB artists. Although Sheren Tang has endorsed many advertisements, she is no longer under a management contract with TVB, and the station only receives revenue from the advertising slots. While there are still many familiar faces in television commercials, a significant number are former artists, movie stars, and influencers.</p>
<h2>ViuTV Actively Promotes Artists to Go Global</h2>
<p>In contrast, ViuTV's business focus is entirely artist-centric. The results specifically mention enhancing the international visibility of its artists through participation in large productions and international events. For example, Edan Lu starred in the Korean drama &#34;Model Taxi 3,&#34; and Marf Qiu served as the opening act for the international band Coldplay's concert in Hong Kong, showcasing ViuTV's efforts to create opportunities for its artists. Additionally, ViuTV has secured collaborations for its artists with international brands, such as Sanrio and the NBA, to explore revenue sources beyond content and live events.</p>
<p>The OTT business under PCCW, the Viu streaming platform, could also become a future asset for ViuTV artists. Although Viu's penetration rate in Hong Kong is not high, it has been developing successfully in the Southeast Asian market
According to statistics from market research institutions, Viu has nearly 10 million subscribers in Southeast Asia, second only to Netflix's 12.8 million, and has significant growth potential. The OTT business had an EBITDA of HKD 620 million last year, a year-on-year increase of 56%, with an EBITDA margin of 24%, up 8 percentage points year-on-year. In the future, Viu will increase the development of online short dramas, and it is believed that ViuTV artists can also break out of Hong Kong through this.</p>
<h2>How to Retain Big Stars?</h2>
<p>TVB has previously invested many resources in cultivating artists, but after experiencing too many instances of artists leaving after becoming famous, coupled with a deterioration in financial conditions a few years ago, TVB now views artists merely as general labor and is no longer willing to spend resources to &#34;nurture&#34; them or fight for opportunities for them to work outside. However, this &#34;cutting off one's nose to spite one's face&#34; approach ultimately weakens the core competitiveness of a television station. How will ViuTV retain its popular artists and avoid following TVB's old path? It is rumored that Mirror's contract will expire in just over two years, which will test the capabilities of ViuTV's management and artist management team.</p>
<p><strong>Lin Xiao Zhen</strong></p>
<p>Related article: 20 years later, do transactions still need to be done on-site? | Lin Xiao Zhen</p>

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<p>TVB and ViuTV have significant differences in their operational strategies. TVB expects its EBITDA to exceed HKD 350 million last year, with overall performance turning from loss to profit, and net profit expected to exceed HKD 50 million. However, ViuTV's EBITDA is HKD 153 million, a year-on-year decrease of 20%, but it has resumed growth in the second half of the year and is expected to improve financial performance by hosting group concerts. TVB places importance on advertising revenue, but with declining viewership, advertisers may push for lower prices. In contrast, ViuTV focuses on artists and actively promotes their development</p>

Differences in Operating Strategies between TVB and ViuTV | Lam Siu-Chan