US-INDIA GLOBAL REVIEW JUL-SEP 2020

26 US-INDIA GLOBAL REVIEW JULY-SEPTEMBER 2020 Intelligence Series, explores the community’s consumer behaviors that are setting the pace for two important industry trends: the media platforms that are winning among Asian Americans amid the streaming wars and the content that is capturing their attention; and secondly, the gaming industry that is breaking boundaries as entertainment, and how Asian Americans are integral to its ecosystem as gamers, spectators, and content creators. ‘There’s been a sea change in how Asian Americans are per- ceived in the U.S. For a long time, Asian-American characters were mainly a martial artist or the awk- ward nerd; and when it wasn’t a speaking character, an owner of a convenient store or a laundromat – and always the foreigner,’ Nielsen notes. There were some notable moments along the way, like Connie Chung’s appointment as the co-anchor of the CBS Evening News in 1993 and the all-Asian cast feature, The Joy Luck Club in 1994, the report says. A pivotal time came in the early 2000s when Harold and Kumar demolished the image of Asian Americans as nerdy and sexless at the box office. The world was also introduced to YouTube. It was a defining moment for Asian American content creators and the community at large. Through this content, Asian Americans began defining their own representation, shifting from self-interest to Asian American interest. As more Asian American content creators were sharing their authentic and unabashed experiences on social media, the bigger their audience grew of all backgrounds, capturing the inter- est of Hollywood, the report says. In 2007, the percentage of Asian-speaking characters in US films was 3.4%. By 2018, that number had grown to 8.2%. The success of the Korean movie, Parasite, making history as the first non-English-language movie to win the Academy’s top award in 2020, also reflects American film- goers’ comfort level with subtitles. According to the report, Asian American households spend sig- nificantly more time on digital devices than on live TV compared to the total population. In fact, 66% of time spent is on comput- ers, smartphones and tablets for Asian Americans, the highest ratio among all consumer segments. This is also the group that is engaging more on TV connected devices that require internet con- nection like Apple TV, Amazon Fire and Roku at 49% versus 44% of the total population. The vari- ance in the usage is particularly true for older Asian Americans, ages 55+ that over index by 33% versus the US average. Asian- American households are 40% more likely to be multigenera- tional, where elders living in those households are more likely to use the technology shared by others in the households. As the Asian American commu- nity has shown strong support of culturally-relevant content on streaming platforms, streaming platforms like Netflix have shown more commitment and investment in producing diverse content that is representative of the US popu- lation compared to Hollywood stu- dios. Notable Asian American-led content on include Netflix comedy specials featuring Asian American comedians like Ronny Chieng, Jo Koy and Ken Jeong and episodic series like Ugly Delicious (Netflix), Wu Assassins (Netflix) and Pen 15 (Hulu), feature Asian American leads. The top most-watched episodic series among Asian Americans on Netflix also reflect a diverse lead cast, such as V Wars, Lost in Space and I Am Not Okay With This. As an audience that’s savvy in social media, with 84% of Asian Americans on social media daily (versus 75% total population), Asian Americans are fueling social engagement around their favorite programming. In the age of the pandemic, with everybody eager for breaking news, it’s no wonder that the time spent watching the news grew by 27% for Asian Americans during the three weeks in March, versus 15% for Non-Hispanic Whites. Asian Americans were also armed with information about the severity of the pandemic through Asian news outlets that con- tributed to their eagerness to stay informed. In-language over-the-air (OTA) broadcasting plays an important role in Asian American communities, as they are the trusted source for local informa- tion at no cost to their viewers. Even prior to the pandemic, Asian In the age of the pandemic, with everybody eager for breaking news, it’s no wonder that the time spent watching the news grew by 27% for Asian Americans during the three weeks in March, versus 15% for Non-Hispanic Whites.