Jony Deng (centre), the General Manager of iQIYI Malaysia and Singapore, together with the cast and crew of 'Senyawa', a Malaysian production that will be premiering on October 25.
ESTABLISHED in 2010, iQIYI is one of the largest online video platforms in China, with over 120 million subscribers. Said to be the Netflix of Asia, China's giant streaming outfit has also been producing its own feed from Malaysia, Thailand and Singapore. And there are plans to go even bigger in the region.
For the record, iQIYI, is currently one of the largest online video sites in the world, with nearly six billion hours spent on its service each month and over 120 million subscribers and 500 million monthly active users
A growing mobile user base in China and rapid development of the entertainment industry over the past decade propelled iQIYI’s growth. Listed on NASDAQ in 2018, prospects for the firm looked bright and even raised US$2.25 billion during its IPO.
And with such bright prospects, iQIYI is now even looking to make further inroads besides China and the South East-Asia region is definitely one of its target.
Jony Deng, the General Manager of iQIYI Malaysia and Singapore, said the outfit has a vision to see iQIYI produce top class series and movies that can be better than the ever-popular Korean movies and dramas in the near future.
To that extent, iQIYI have produced several superb series that has been very popular with the masses. Dramas such as 'Snowy Night Timeless Love' and 'The Killer Bride' have had incredible following in the South-East Asia region.
More support has been solid for iQIYI as they have produced excellent drama series from Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand. In fact, iQIYI has been very active for the Malaysia market and recently they announced they will be rolling out more than a dozen Malay-language Local Originals for release in 2024.
This includes the second season of the highly acclaimed 'Rampas Cintaku', which is iQIYI's first Malay language original. 'Rampas Cintaku' concluded its debut season with overwhelming success after garnering over 100 million digital views globally.
The streaming company also said in the past that they will also continue to work with top creators in Malaysia, such as MIG Productions and Infinitus among others, to bring more Malaysian content to the global audience.
In Thailand, iQIYI are releasing four Thai original productions and 20 new shows from top production houses like One31, Star Hunter Entertainment, Studio Wabi Sabi, Mandee Work, Me Mind Y, Change 2561 to present the best of Thailand to a global Gen Z viewers.
While iQIYI’s content is mainly in Mandarin, Jony noted that cross-language content is increasingly being consumed by global viewers.
He shared that one of iQIYI’s core strategies is to leverage the increasing popularity of Chinese video productions in other countries. Since 2020, iQIYI has established regional offices in South-East Asia, Middle East, North Asia and North America.
"iQIYI has achieved invaluable success after a three-year exploration and testing in overseas markets.
"We've verified the popularity and influence of iQIYI original productions outside of China, as well as how China's business model can be adopted for international markets," said Jony.
On Wednesday (Oct 19), iQIYI announced its latest Malaysian drama series during a press conference in KL Pavilion.
iQIYI will be presenting 'Senyawa', an deeply emotional series featuring a talented ensemble cast, including Trisha Ooi, Shahz Jaszle, Siti Hariesa, Datin Nina Juren, Liang Chia, Aleza Shadan, Heryanto Hassan, and many more, under the skilled direction of Eyra Rahman.
The series which will be centred on the topic of surrogacy among Muslims and the Islamic law forbidding such moves in the country. The series will be exclusively shown on iQIYI and premiering October 25, 2024, at 9pm (every Friday & Saturday).
“As with our previous series, I hope 'SENYAWA' resonates with viewers, offering a unique experience this October. With its compelling storyline, exceptional cast, and meaningful insights into religious laws, this drama serves as both entertainment and a source of reflection,” said Jony.
"But this will not be the end. We aim to see our production gets better all the time and there will be more feed from South-East Asia in the very near future.
"In fact, iQIYI also have aims of breaking into the Indian market. In all, in time, iQIYI are moving forward all the way and maybe, soon we aim to be the best in the world. That is the ultimate aim," said a determined Jony.
In July this year, iQiyi also had announced the upcoming release of over 300 new titles as part of its ongoing efforts to better cater to people's changing demands with high-quality content and emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence.
To further enrich viewers' entertainment experiences, the company said it is expanding into short-form dramas with the launch of its brand-new "Micro-Drama Theater" and "Short-Drama Theater", which will be available exclusively to paid subscribers.
The strategic initiative marks iQiyi's push for addressing the growing demand for concise storytelling and short-form content, building on the success of iQiyi's acclaimed "Light On Theater" — a collection of tightly written suspense series known for its high production quality.
"We have many plans and we also to collaborate with industry partners to drive further innovation. That is why I'm here and the reason we highly appreciate content from this region," said Jony.
According to the latest first-quarter data from AMPD, the digital measurement platform owned and operated by Media Partners Asia, the global appetite for Chinese drama is also surging, with C-dramas gaining substantial popularity in South-East Asia and becoming the top choice for local viewers.
"To that extent iQIYI has always given importance to high production values. And besides C-dramas we will also give much importance for feed from the South-East Asia region," added Jony
Currently, half of the content on iQIYI International consists of Chinese mainland productions, supplemented by dramas from Thailand, Japan, and South Korea, along with local productions for markets including Malaysia.
A such, viewers in Malaysia can always expect a high production series such as 'Senyawa' and there will be always more top class shows coming the way of local fans.
As for now, 'Senyawa' is coming your way and keep the date of October 25 free for yourself and to watch the much-anticipated series.
