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, is clear. Lo Ting-fai, the CEO, has to grow the group’s popularity and elevate Cantopop beyond Hong Kong’s borders. Lofai’s (Lo’s nickname) strategic guidance will be pivotal as the group navigated the complexities of the global entertainment industry that has been undergone significant transformation due to the digital transformation spurred on by the COVID-19 pandemic and new strategic opportunities given by global digital content platforms. How can Lofai secure Mirror’s continued success and international stardom? And more broadly, with new digital creative content and platform business model, can Cantopop be revived globally in the age of platformisation and AI?

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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