The OTT platform Viu and Discovery Networks Asia-Pacific have partnered to bring their first content collaboration, the reality travelogue No Sleep No FOMO, to 14 markets across the region.
Beginning today, August 9, subscribers of Discovery Channel and Discovery Asia in Brunei, Cambodia, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Macau, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam will have access to the program. Discovery Channel and Discovery Asia reach over 22 million households in these markets.
The eight-episode series sees Asian celebrities and social media influencers try to conquer popular travel destinations. They are tasked with completing 60 missions within 60 hours without sleep in different cities around the world. The host, Singapore’s Paul Foster, is joined by celebrity co-hosts Kim Jong Kook from the show Running Man and singer/songwriter Eric Nam, both of South Korea. They are accompanied by social media influencers Hana Tam (Hong Kong), Kevin Woo (South Korea), Alexander Lee Eusebio (South Korea), Benjamin Kheng (Singapore), Nat Ho (Singapore), LaureenUy (the Philippines) and Taya Rogers (Thailand). Together, the crew of influencers reaches a fan base of more than 12 million social media followers.
Fans are able to follow No Sleep No FOMO through dedicated hashtags #ViuNoSleepNoFomo and #ViuEngage, as well as to influence the course of the celebrities’ adventures by interacting on their social media channels in real-time. For example, for one of the series’ challenges, the celebrities were required to become wedding crashers; they followed tips provided by fans on social media and were able to procure an invitation to a Malay wedding.
Helen Sou, senior VP of digital media at PCCW Media, said, “We are excited to partner with Discovery, one of the global leaders in entertainment, to expand the reach of our premium content to its quality audiences across all screens. This win-win collaboration not only maximizes the value of content we created for both viewers and partners, but also enables our pan-regional content to travel to more countries.”
Sou added, “Since the beginning of the production, the social media posts of No Sleep No FOMO have generated more than one million social engagements and reached over 14 million users. The interactive social media element allows the digital generation to be co-creators and this is the most important factor that has won their hearts and that has contributed to the high engagement rate.”
Anna Pak Burdin, Discovery’s VP and general manager for Southeast Asia, said, “At Discovery, we power people’s passions. No Sleep No FOMO celebrates our global DNA—living life to the fullest, all within 60 hours. We are delighted to partner with Viu, a leading pan-Asia OTT platform, who shares our vision of providing premium content to viewers.”
