By: CAPA JRC reporter Angie Shen
[Gerry Liu is recognized as the Chairman of the Board at UChannel TV. UChannel TV is a media company that operates in the broadcasting and entertainment industry. As Chairman, Gerry Liu plays a significant role in overseeing the strategic direction, decision-making processes, and overall management of the company.]
Q: As the Chairman of the Board at UChannel TV, could you share with us the company's vision and mission and how you plan to achieve them?
UChannel TV means a TV for you. Being in a Chinese North American community means to serve the community in North America with quality light programming, in all areas from entertainment, news, social, cultural and other quality programs. [UChannel TV] is for the Chinese American community all over the states. Even though the TV station is in Silicon Valley, the digital platform will serve the entire North America.
Q: UChannel TV operates in a highly competitive media landscape. What strategies have you implemented to stay ahead of the competition and adapt to changing market trends?
The world is changing very fast. TV is just one of the platforms [available]. Feature videos such as Youtube and direct broadcast are other mainstream channels that have migrated more to TV and feature platforms. Also, content wise we serve more people from Taiwan, China, [and] Hong Kong, so we need to have a variety of programs. But most importantly, we have to create programs that talk about North America and Chinese American communities. We talk about American societies, politics, and culture. We care about our children, their education, and their future. So we have to create programs that talk about us, about you. [That’s] how we differentiate from other TV shows which only aggravate culture from Asia.
Q: How do you see the future of traditional television broadcasting in the face of increasing digital streaming platforms? What is UChannel TV's approach to balancing these two mediums?
We are a blended platform. [We have] both the TV in Silicon Valley as well as digital platforms, so we acquire our financial resources to be increasingly shifting towards digital platforms, but we cannot just be a digital platform because there is so much competition. So we have to have channels at the base station in Silicon Valley and the TV. That's for the older generation, but anybody who is below 40-45 will have digital videos on demand. So it's a blended platform.
Q: Content plays a crucial role in attracting and retaining audiences. How does UChannel TV ensure a diverse and engaging content lineup? How do you decide on the programming mix?
We have the digital data to know who watches what. So for soap operas ( fei zao ju ), we select quality content from yuan nan wet si, for example, for people 15 or above, younger programing for younger children. We combine programs from China and Taiwan to suit different cultural backgrounds, so we have to consider how to cover broadly for seniors and younger generations. I’ll admit we have a long way to go because the younger millennials or GenZ are not exactly in our reach yet, so we have to cover and reach out more.
Q: In recent years, there has been a shift towards personalized and on-demand content. How is UChannel TV embracing this trend, and what steps are being taken to cater to individual viewer preferences?
Clearly the AI content of a digital platform, [and] even Youtube and social media will recommend that for you. So we have many viewers who are more programmed-focused than station-focused. Some people may be more into social culture, others may be into politics or travel, so it's channel and programing-focused…This is better achieved by a digital platform, where it automatically shows you what you would like to watch and recommend a related program. This is beyond traditional TV, and this is how we are a blended TV.
This article was provided by Chinese American Parents Association Junior Reporter Club (CAPA JRC) with members who interviewed, audio recorded, wrote, translated, and video recorded. CAPA JRC has 25 Montgomery County middle to high school students. They have created a bilingual platform delivering news and serving the community.
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