【明報專訊】THE GOVERNMENT'S NEW BUDGET is to be published tomorrow (28 February). The government intends to introduce more measures to attract tourists. "A Symphony of Lights", which is staged every night on both sides of Victoria Harbour, is expected to have a shakeup, and might include monthly firework displays and drone shows in the future.
The practice of staging firework displays on the second day of the Lunar New Year began around 40 years ago. They have seemingly become one of the most important festive events in Hong Kong every year. Large-scale firework displays are also very popular during the New Year's Eve countdown, the Handover celebrations on 1st July, and the National Day celebrations on 1st October, attracting a large number of citizens and tourists every time. Take last year. According to people in the tourism industry, every time there was a firework display, the number of tourists rose significantly on those days before and after the display. They argue that any method that can attract more tourists is worth a try, so monthly firework displays are worth consideration.
However, the law of diminishing marginal returns is also a fundamental theory in economics. Currently, Hong Kong Disneyland basically sets off fireworks every night, and there are indeed tourists who stay until night-time to watch the firework displays. However, for those returning visitors who have watched them before, fireworks might not be a selling point. If large-scale firework displays become a monthly routine, will their ability to attract visitors decline as a whole? Will that in effect dilute the tourists who come to Hong Kong specifically to watch the fireworks during major festivals? These are issues that the authorities need to consider in depth.
No doubt it does not mean that the number of large-scale firework displays to be held each year cannot be increased. Perhaps one more firework display during the Mid-Autumn Festival can exhilarate moon-watching citizens and tourists even further. Furthermore, in the case of some special events, such as major football matches or performances by superstars, smaller-scale firework displays used as a backdrop can also heighten the atmosphere at the scene. But overdoing this might indeed backfire, and a delicate balance must be obtained. If the authorities feel that the daily "Symphony of Lights" is too formulaic and want to bring some uniqueness and attractiveness to one or two days a month, they can actually consider holding more large-scale drone performances.
The global market size of drone light shows has grown from almost zero to approximately US$1 billion within just ten years. It is expected to reach US$2.2 billion in 2031. True, for a drone show to be dazzling, scale is important. It is quite costly to assemble a fleet consisting of hundreds or thousands of drones. However, considering the fact that the fleet can be reused, the average cost, if the shows are performed frequently, might actually be lower than that of monthly firework displays.
In recent years, a number of drone shows have been held in Hong Kong, and the outcomes and reception have been quite satisfactory. The SAR government is determined to develop innovation and technology and wants to promote creative arts. In this sense, the drone performance industry is deserving of the support of the authorities as it is an emerging industry with unlimited potential. To revamp "A Symphony of Lights" to increase the selling points of Victoria Harbour's nightscape, the authorities might as well start with drone performances, thus giving the industry a bigger stage to develop.
明報社評2024.02.27：煙花雖美不宜太濫 無人機表演值推廣
《財政預算案》明天出爐，政府有意推出更多措施吸引遊客，維港兩岸每晚上演的「幻彩詠香江」料將革新，未來還可能每月都有一次煙花及無人機表演。
新春年初二煙花匯演，已有約40年歷史，儼然成為本港每年其中一個最重要節慶活動。另外，除夕跨年倒數、七一回歸和十一國慶，大型煙花匯演也相當受歡迎，每次都能吸引大批市民和旅客。有旅遊業人士指出，以去年為例，每次放煙花當日及前後數日，旅客數字都有明顯上升，認為任何能夠吸引更多旅客的方法都值得做，每月放煙花值得考慮。
不過邊際效益遞減法則，也是非常基本的經濟學理論。現時香港迪士尼樂園原則上每晚都會放煙花，部分旅客確會為了看煙花而留到晚上，但對於之前欣賞過的「回頭客」，煙花就未必是賣點。倘若大型煙花匯演，變成每月一次的例行公事，其整體吸客能力會否下降？會否變相搶走「大時大節」特意來港看煙花的旅客，出現「攤薄」效應？這些都是當局需要深入考慮的問題。
當然，每年大型煙花匯演，並非一次都不能再增加，說不定中秋節多放一次煙花，可以令賞月市民和旅客更為興奮雀躍；另外，若遇上一些特別活動，諸如球賽盛事和國際巨星出騷，以較小規模的煙花匯演襯托，也可以令現場氣氛更高漲，但貪多務得，確有可能弄巧反拙，分寸拿揑必須精準。當局若嫌「幻彩」天天辦太公式化，希望每月都有一兩天別具特色和吸引力，其實可以考慮多搞無人機大型表演。
全球無人機燈光表演市場規模，短短10年間由幾乎不存在，發展到目前約10億美元，預料2031年更可擴張至22億美元。誠然，無人機表演要夠「大堆頭」才精彩，由成百上千無人機所組成的機隊，成本相當高，但考慮到機隊可以重用，若是經常演出，平均計起來，可能比每月放煙花便宜。
近年香港曾多次舉辦無人機匯演，效果和反應都相當理想。特區政府銳意發展創科，同時也想推動創意藝術，無人機表演業是新興事業，潛力無限，值得當局支持。改革「幻彩」增加維港夜景賣點，當局不妨多從無人機表演入手，讓業界有更大舞台發展。
■/ Glossary 生字 /
fundamental : central; forming the necessary basis of something
exhilarate : to make somebody feel very happy and excited
reception : the type of welcome that is given to somebody/something