Ignited: Can Hong Kong Boy Band Mirror Spark a Global Cantopop Revival with Digitalisation and Platformisation of Creative Content and AI?

In late September 2024, Hong Kong’s boy band, Mirror, released their latest single, Hunt You Down, garnering more than 450,000 views on YouTube in a month. Mirror’s rise coincided with a broader cultural revival in the city, while also signifying a strategic response to the disruption in the creative content industry brought on by digital technology. As a Cantonese pop (Cantopop) band, their lyrics and references to Hong Kong’s unique culture resonate with a generation that strove to reassert its distinctiveness. They are more than pop idols; the 12 of them represent the new wave of the Cantopop revival.

The challenge for MakerVille, the company representing Mirror, was clear. Lo Ting-fai (affectionately known as Lofai), the CEO, had to grow the group’s popularity and elevate Cantopop beyond Hong Kong’s borders. MakerVille would play a pivotal role as the group navigated the complexities of a global entertainment industry reshaped by the digital shifts accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the new strategic opportunities created by global digital content platforms. How could the company secure Mirror’s continued success and international stardom? And more broadly, with new digital creative content and platform business model, could Cantopop be revived globally? 

This case is suitable for undergraduate and postgraduate courses in strategic management, innovation, and international business. Students should be able to apply concepts and frameworks to explain the rise and popularity of Cantopop, specifically Mirror; suggest how MakerVille could internationalise Mirror; comprehend how the creative and cultural industry is transformed by digitalisation, platformisation, VR/AR, and AI.

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