Livestream Archives - MARKETECH APAC

Singapore – Bigo Live, the worldwide live streaming platform, has launched the Amateur Streamers Incentive Program, which aims to assist aspiring broadcasters who want to use livestreaming to exhibit their talents.

The project is in line with Bigo Live’s general strategy, which is to promote and create an ecosystem that is centred on the creative economy in an organic manner. It also seeks to preserve a welcoming environment on the network for both creators and users.

Bigo Live plans to build on its current creator-centric incentive programs and initiatives through the Amateur Streamers Incentive Program. The program’s goal is to inspire Bigo Live users to start their own live streaming sessions, which will attract more users to the network. Additionally, it aims to persuade those who are interested in live streaming but are not currently users to sign up and use the site for themselves.

Those who are approved for the program will have access to a customised initiative that will teach them how to stream live sessions on Bigo Live with specific training. Best practices for becoming skilled Bigo Live broadcasters will be covered throughout the course. In addition to having the freedom to arrange when they livestream, participants will benefit from the platform’s ability to provide them with worldwide exposure.

Significant incentives will be built into the program to encourage continuous and engaging content creation while also promoting live streaming as a source of income.

The Amateur Streamers Incentive Program, which was started earlier this month in the Middle East and North Africa region, has since expanded to a number of nations in the Americas, Asia-Pacific, and Europe. The program reached the registration of over 300,000 amateur broadcasters to date.

Speaking about the program, James, president of BIGO Technology, said, “Our Amateur Streamers Incentive Program offers a custom-made agenda that meets the unique needs of our amateur broadcasters, who despite their talent, often hesitate to step into the limelight. We recognise this, and we hope that through the program, our users can overcome their inhibitions, showcase their creativity, and seamlessly integrate into a welcoming community that celebrates their unique voices and perspectives.”

“Through a comprehensive training and reward mechanism, we want to nurture the next generation of broadcasters and empower them to be the best versions of themselves,” James said.

He added, “The global creator economy has allowed the livestreaming industry to experience exponential growth in recent years, presenting limitless opportunities within the virtual landscape. As we remain committed to empowering our users by lowering the barriers of entry and providing then with the right environment to develop, the Amateur Streamers Incentive Program will provide a launchpad for aspiring content creators and deliver positive impact through a holistic and inclusive livestreaming experience.”

Manila, Philippines – Local livestreaming platform Kumu and Google Cloud have announced a partnership in order to build AI tools to assist content creators in terms of entertainment, education, and customer service.

This collaboration between Kumu and Google Cloud aims to encourage more startups and enterprises alike to embrace the power of generative AI and to understand how this technology can best complement and strengthen their businesses.

At a showcase event at the Google office in the Philippines, Rexy Dorado, co-founder and president at Kumu, showcased a live demo of “Crisostomo A.I. Barra”, Kumu’s first AI streamer who can respond to questions about Philippine history (even beyond what’s written in “Noli Me Tangere”, the novel that his character and personality was based on), the Kumu app, and general pop culture. Dorado also gave the attendees a sneak peek into other AI avatars in the pipeline: AI game show hosts, fortune tellers, tutors, tour guides, and customer support agents.

An early adopter of Google Cloud’s generative AI capabilities for businesses, Kumu has been building its AI streamer and other AI avatars using Google Cloud’s PaLM 2 for Text and Chat first-party models, Embeddings for text and images, and Generative AI Studio – all of which can be accessed through the Vertex AI platform.

For the company, it has always sought ways to make Filipino content more fun and engaging with innovative technology. They added that as soon as generative AI started gaining traction, Kumu looked to an AI-first company like Google Cloud to explore how the technology could be applied to enhance its live content experiences.

Jakarta, Indonesia – Media platform IDN Media has announced that it has acquired local livestreaming monetisation platform Saweria, in a bid of improving its livestreaming business ecosystem, while also supporting the local content creator economy.

The synergy between IDN Media and Saweria is anticipated to substantially expand the economic potential of content creators in Indonesia, particularly to strengthen IDN Media’s priorities in the livestreaming industry.

“Beyond boosting user growth, this synergy is expected to significantly support the integration of cutting-edge technologies within IDN Media and to further solidify inter-team collaboration for future endeavors,” the company stated,

Despite the acquisition, the Saweria team will continue to function as usual. Livestreamers’ experience in utilizing the Saweria platform will remain unchanged, and the primary focus of both Saweria and IDN Media is to ensure the satisfaction of livestreamers and Saweria users.

Winston Utomo, founder and CEO at IDN Media, said, “We are delighted to announce the acquisition of Saweria into the IDN Media ecosystem. Our heartfelt gratitude to all partners, streamers, and users who have supported Saweria and Indonesia’s creator economy.”

He added, “With this acquisition, we are committed to continuing our vision of creating a one-stop platform for Millennials and Gen Z and strengthening the livestreaming industry in Indonesia. As Indonesia’s largest livestreaming monetization platform, we hope Saweria can empower its streamers to craft high-quality content that enables them to create a sustainable livelihood for themselves and their family.”

IDN Media is continuously expanding its media and entertainment business over the years. In June 2022, the company acquired the operations of idol group JKT48, which was previously handled by Dentsu Inter Admark Media Group Indonesia. At that same month, it was also able to get undisclosed funding from various investors, including Mayapada Group and KMIF.

Singapore – As part of the celebration for International Women’s Day, short video platform TikTok in Singapore has announced a series of live events under the “#WhenWomenWin” which will spotlight inspirational women who have made a home on the platform to share their heartfelt stories, channel good vibes, and champion the causes that matter most to them.

For the platform, TikTok has certainly blossomed into a space where women from all walks of life can speak their truth, break barriers, and empower others – all while celebrating the extraordinary changes that come to life. These include young female entrepreneurs, coders, rising stars in the local music scene, to changemakers shedding light on the often-unspoken realities of burns and chronic illnesses.

The live series will be scheduled from 1 to 8 of March. The lineup will feature content creators jewellery brand XVXII owner Vidhi, actress Julie Tan, polytechnic student Tammie Ong who spreads awareness on rare diseases, Anytime Fitness’ sales rep and salsation instructor Syakirah Syazwana, mando-pop R&B songstress Soph T, educational and motivational content creator Adeline Tay, full-time retail associate Nur Amirah Arman who spreads awareness about the blood condition called Thalassaemia, as well as radio DJ and host Germaine Leonora.

Other participants include full-time software developer Ainul Mohamed Razib, publishers Nicole Lim and Kimberly Ho who are known for their sites “Our Grandfather Story” and “Something Private”, callisthenics coach Charlene Chew, and Safe Place founder Jennifer Heng.

In a statement to MARKETECH APAC, Doreen Tan, user and content operations manager at TikTok Singapore, said, “TikTok has become a home for championing positivity and authentic expression, as we provide an inclusive space that uplifts and celebrates the successes of our amazing community.”

She added, “We continue to be inspired by our very own female creators from Singapore, who have made a huge impact on our community in their own unique way, whether it’s guiding young entrepreneurs, shedding light on important social issues, or creating a safe environment for others to share their truth. We are certainly looking forward to the line-up of speakers featured in this year’s International Women’s Day LIVE programming, and welcome everyone to tune in for their incredible stories.”

Philippines – Amid the rise in adoption of live commerce both from brands and consumers, the Philippines ’ first livestream shopping network, Shoppertainment Live, opens seven diverse and fully functional studio sets which it calls ‘Livestyle’ studios to bolster its virtual activation.

The ‘Livestyle’ studios will be catering to different categories of fashion and beauty, with kitchen studios for cooking and home appliances, lifestyle studios for talk shows and homecare, as well as technology studios for mobile and gadgets, and music studios and recreation studios for entertainment.

Shopepertainment CEO Hiyasmin Neri-Soyao, who was a former host of local shopping channel O Shopping, shared that the types of the studios were based on the product categories they have identified to be on the rise and in demand.

Shoppertainment is a tech-enabled network for e-commerce and social media, enabling advertising agencies, companies, and e-commerce platforms Lazada and Shopee to properly sell their products in an online broadcast setup. These are produced at the said studios inside their Quezon City headquarters, with in-house presenters from their talent pool.

“With more studios, we expect more action for the market. The team’s confidence stems from handling the smallest local businesses to the biggest global brands as part of our roster of clients. Shoppertainment Live’s strength is making products sellable, handling diverse products such as cosmetics, clothing, electronics, and everything in between,” Neri-Soyao said.

The live e-commerce network has also launched a new incubation program for livestream presenters through its Shoppertainment Academy. The Academy is a company initiative that aims to educate and equip Shoppertainment Live presenters with skills to be sale-centric, entertaining, and engaging to the market.

Grooming the next generation of marketers, which it uniquely calls ‘influensales’, is within the network’s goal to make its Livestyle activation effective in the virtual realm.

Neri-Soyao said, “Not all presenters can produce the same numbers for every lifestyle. That is why Shoppertainment Live brought together a diverse group of presenters whom we trained to do Influensales™ as opposed to simply producing buzz and engagement for the brand. This follows the company’s philosophy wherein we believe that content is king but they like it better when the cash register rings.”

Along with new developments, the company has also revealed that it eyes to spread its roots nationally and to also expand internationally. The company aims to install regional offices in three years’ time to open up the opportunity for regional speakers to sell in their own language.

Internationally, the network is also working on its Southeast Asia and global expansion plans, citing the potential of Filipino livestream presenters because of their strong communication skills and infectious enthusiasm.

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – Dentsu Malaysia and live video commerce enabler Nuffnang Live Commerce has forged a new partnership that will integrate the two firms’ capabilities to drive marketing solutions for brands on live commerce.

Nuffnang Live Commerce is a subsidiary under Netccentric Limited, an investment holding company for media platforms. As part of dentsu’s ‘Total Commerce’ solutions for brands, the partnership brings onboard live video commerce service offering which will enable advertisers to strengthen their e-commerce strategy and drive traffic to their brands’ social pages, create better engagements with brand influencers, and drive on-the-spot sales.

Live commerce is the latest innovation in online commerce today, which aims to bring newer experiences for consumers. E-commerce platforms and brands have caught on the trend of livestream e-commerce which had started in China, and Asia’s Shopee and Lazada now have it well-placed in their marketplaces. Said consumer trend promises further branded content, live influencer engagement, and also real-time conversion.

Dentsu Malaysia said that its Total Commerce ambition is to integrate all the strategic and operational capabilities and ecosystem enablers of what makes a robust and holistic commerce solution, whether through proprietary online stores, marketplaces, social channels, or physical stores in Malaysia, to bring to life the best online shopping experiences for customers.

Jing Wen Foo, who was just recently appointed as dentsu malaysia’s e-commerce director, said, “With the rise of livestreaming as a new conversion channel for commerce and consistent growth in share of sale of social commerce, there is a strong use case for us to strengthen dentsu’s Total Commerce capability around live commerce to empower brands to leverage this trend beyond the packaged offers available in [the] market to accelerate their e-commerce growth.”

Meanwhile, Ganesh Kumar Bangah, executive chairman of Netccentric Limited, described live commerce as the ‘secret sauce’ for brands to succeed online.

“The formula for online success is for brands and businesses to sell products on these platforms through live commerce, a trend that has and continues to accelerate due to the pandemic. Live commerce is a proven effective way to sell and it’s for everybody and not just the big brands,” said Bangah.

Dheeraj Raina, CEO of Media for dentsu malaysia, adds, “E-commerce platforms are a dominant media touchpoint and immensely mainstream now. But consumers are constantly driving a change in the way they shop on e-commerce platforms and for us to be able to anticipate that change and help brands win on it, is a critical part of our commitment to the growth of our clients’ business. With this addition of Live Commerce partnership powered by our proprietary Total commerce products, we should be able to unlock the ease of adoption of this new channel and bring brands closer to consumers in a humanized form.”

This integration is already being rolled out across clients from FMCG, health and beauty, and consumer electronics categories.

Singapore – TikTok in Singapore has launched its first-ever #JobTok educational live stream series, a lineup of shows that aims to equip youth aspiring for tech careers with knowledge of the jobs and skillsets of the future in the industry and to help them to make more informed career decisions in life.

The educational series will run from 31 March until 6 April 2021 and will be a hybrid broadcast, where one will be streamed on TikTok Live itself and on Facebook, and the other on Zoom.

TikTok invited home-grown tech talents from TikTok itself and Government Technology Agency (GovTech) to lead the live stream and talk about inspiring experiences working in the tech sector, and debunk commonly-held myths about the profession. Invited hosts will also be sharing actionable steps that undergraduates can take to transition smoothly into a technology-first workforce.

The first in the educational series is ‘Women Leadership in Tech’, which is a virtual grassroots dialogue session, to be hosted by Member of Parliament (MP) Tin Pei Ling, alongside female leaders from ByteDance Singapore, who will discuss how women can be empowered to thrive in the tech and innovation sectors, as well as the exciting job opportunities and career prospects that Singaporeans can capture in the rapidly-growing post-COVID-19 digital economy.

The educational series also includes ‘Adulting Advice From Young GovTechies’, which will be on 31 March at 8:00 pm SGT, and ‘The Faces Behind TikTok LIVE’, which will be on 6 April at 8:00 pm SGT.

The virtual dialogue with MP Tin will be streamed on Zoom and MP Tin’s Facebook Page on 31 March 2021, at 7:30 pm SGT. The rest of the #JobTok educational series will be broadcasted live on the TikTok app beginning on 31 March to 6 April 2021.

In addition to the series itself, TikTok will also be launching an #Adulting contest, which invites users to share their personal tips for youth entering the workforce, including interview tips, internship experiences, and how to ink their first job. The contest will run from 31 March until 4 April where participants will get a chance to win prizes collectively worth around S$1,200.

According to Joana Mikaela Liew, the head of talent development for ByteDance APAC and META, as the country emerged stronger from the COVID-19 pandemic, it is crucial to dispel uncertainty among today’s job-seekers and equip them with the relevant skills to be future-ready.

“Our Jobs and Skills series aims to provide an insider’s look into the tech industry and spark greater interest among more young Singaporeans towards the new opportunities brought about by the digital economy. Additionally, through our meaningful dialogue with MP Tin Pei Ling, we hope to bring this conversation closer to the grassroots and address on-the-ground concerns of those who are either looking for job opportunities in the tech space or planning to upskill,” added Liew.

Singapore – Digital media company Limelight Networks has unveiled a new enhancement for its streaming service Limelight Realtime Streaming – providing sub-second latency for time-sensitive video applications that enable live interaction with viewers.

In a press statement, Limelight Networks said Realtime Streaming is part of the widest range of low latency online streaming solutions in the industry that solve the perpetual challenge of delays in event broadcasts. In addition, Realtime Streaming mobile and HTML software development kits (SDKs) can also provide easy integration of interactive live applications with Limelight’s global private network.

Limelight Networks said the improved platform allows live video applications in areas such as:

Live sports—In-event betting allowing fans to bet on in-game outcomes while the game is being played.
Live auctions—Remote bidders can participate through a livestream and have a “just like being there” experience along with those on-site.
Online gaming—Online casinos can allow all players to instantly see table action and to place bets more quickly, increasing the number of hands that can be played each hour.

“As online video has quickly grown in popularity, performance expectations have increased and new technologies, such as Limelight Realtime Streaming, enable innovative new ways to engage audiences. Now live events are truly live with the lowest possible latency, and it’s possible to create interactive experiences that were never before possible,” stated Nigel Burmeister, vice president at Limelight Networks.

Shanghai, China – Customer-centric innovations and features—this has been Alibaba’s focal point this year as they recently announced their plans for the annual 11.11 Global Shopping Festival.

As ‘11.11’ continues to grow by the year, Alibaba focused on launching new strategies in the midst of changing consumer behaviors. Strategies include promotion of Alipay’s digital lifestyle platform, ‘doubling’ of shopping windows that will aid in featuring more brands and merchants, consumer reach and promotions, and utilization of livestreaming technology to drive more engagement from customers, especially from Chinese consumers, which has been noted to create the largest international presence to date.

Alibaba’s Alipay digital lifestyle platform aims at connecting almost two million local service providers in China, including micro-merchants such as street stalls and small-scale grocery stores. On the other hand, the company recently launched its Taobao Deals’ “RMB1 Sales” campaign, which aims at encouraging consumers to purchase goods at huge discounts and free shipping. Lastly, in regards to the livestreaming strategies, Alibaba aims to launch a shopping festival concept in Southeast Asia-namely in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam markets.

Jiang Fan, president of Taobao and Tmall, expressed his hopes for the 11.11 Global Shopping Festival, stating that through these innovations, the company hopes to adapt to the changes this year has brought to the consumer market.

“The pandemic has fundamentally changed consumer shopping preferences and accelerated digital transformation of many businesses. Through our expansion from ‘single’ to ‘double,’ 11.11 will be offering more opportunities for merchants both online and offline to engage with consumers as well as provide a better consumer experience overall,” Fan stated.

Hong Kong – Travel and leisure booking platform Klook officially unveils the newest feature on its app, an interactive livestream called Klook Live!.

While users on Klook have only been enticed of new food and travel offerings via images and text on the app, users will now be able to view up-close the offerings through interactive and instant video content on Klook Live!.

The feature has been formally launched in August in five APAC markets Hong Kong, Taiwan, Thailand, Singapore, and the Philippines.

During this period, Klook released a series of hyper-localized content on Klook Live!, featuring offerings from food and dining to hotel staycation packages, where the five markets have reported a 4 times average uplift in conversion rates. This is compared to in-app conversion rates on an average day.

According to the brand’s data, in Thailand, a staycation surprise deal has been sold out in just eight minutes, while in Singapore, two out of three staycation bookings made within 24 hours were direct conversions as a result of the livestream. Both countries also experienced about a two times uplift in revenue compared to an average day.

Meanwhile in Hong Kong, a number of food and dining exclusive deals were snapped up in less than five minutes.

With the new feature, the brand aims to introduce traveltainment, to which it refers to as a new form of immersive content that elevates users’ ways of discovering and booking both local and overseas hospitality offerings.

“The pandemic has made users even more critical and discerning when making a purchase. With Klook Live!, we enable users to gain a more authentic look at our offerings, as well as directly ask questions in real-time before buying,” said Marcus Yong, vice president of APAC marketing.

“Our early success demonstrates that users are increasingly demanding a new way to discover things-to-do, starting from their backyard. It also signals that users prefer a more entertaining, social, and personalized customer experience,” added Yong.

During the livestream on Klook Live!, customers can interact directly with merchants, express their feelings through emoji and polls, redeem exclusive promo codes and check-out; all while watching a live episode.

According to the company, Klook Live! is designed to cater to the region’s growing demand for online video content on mobile devices. It refers to a study by digital research brand eMarketer, that over 1.2 billion Asia-Pacific users consume video content on their mobile devices in 2019, and that this is expected to increase by over 75% to 1.6 billion by 2023.

The company also looks to leverage the forecast that video content is expected to be a norm post-pandemic as people consume more video content. According to a study by market research firm Globalwebindex, Gen Z respondents said that they expect their increased levels of consumption of social media, videos, and streaming services to continue even after the outbreak.

On the merchant side, Klook is confident that the new feature will aid vendors in targeting their audience reach which has proven trickier amid the pandemic.

“With international travel restrictions in place, merchants require creative platforms to showcase their offerings to local audiences and encourage them to support local businesses that depend on tourism. With Klook Live!, merchants of all sizes can bridge that gap and build stronger connections with local users, boosting brand awareness and sales,” the company said in a press statement.

In the coming weeks, Klook Live! will be rolling out more content and products, including episodic programs to unveil a new local carnival in Taiwan and indoor recreational parks in Malaysia among others

Klook Live! can be accessed by downloading the Klook app on Google Play or the App Store.