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The 2018 FIFA World Cup™ in Russia swept across Taiwan with overwhelming enthusiasm. On the first day, over 100,000 online viewers flooded ELTA’s OTT platform, causing temporary service disruptions and preventing smooth live streaming. Facing this sudden crisis, ELTA’s entire team acted swiftly and decisively, resolving the issue within 30 hours — turning a viewing “pain point” (inaccessible service) into a “delight point” (free viewing). Their effective crisis management earned CEO Sally Chen a place among “Top 100 MVP Managers of 2018” and the prestigious title of “Super MVP of the Year” by *Manager Today* magazine.

“The World Cup Streaming Crisis” — Resolved in 30 Hours
At 8 p.m. on June 14, ELTA’s technical team reported service instability during the first match. CEO Sally Chen immediately activated the emergency response protocol to address the surge in streaming traffic. Despite these efforts, the massive and unexpected influx overwhelmed the system, ending the first day with service interruptions. After receiving a flood of customer complaints, Chen promptly announced a compensation plan for subscribers while preparing additional measures. On the second night, traffic spiked again, and realizing the infrastructure could no longer handle paid traffic alone, Chen made a bold decision: make all World Cup matches free to watch on the OTT platform without login requirements, alongside bitrate adjustments to stabilize service. Partnering with Chunghwa Telecom for differentiation, ELTA successfully resolved the “World Cup streaming glitch” within 30 hours.

Effective Crisis Management — Sally Chen Named Super MVP
The quick and decisive crisis handling drew wide praise and invitations for Chen to share her experience on how to turn a crisis into opportunity — and opportunity into growth. Under her leadership, ELTA’s World Cup coverage achieved remarkable results, benefiting all parties: the Sports Administration, ELTA, Chunghwa Telecom, CTS, Taiwan Sports Lottery, and viewers. *Manager Today* recognized her innovative and decisive management, naming her both among 2018’s “Top 100 MVP Managers” and the “Super MVP of the Year.” Judges unanimously praised Chen’s leadership and innovation as exemplary for all professional managers in Taiwan.

Crisis Management Principles — Solve Pain Points, Deliver Delight Points
Reflecting on the experience, Chen said, “Anyone can succeed in good times — true management is tested in adversity.” She emphasized that crisis management requires two key steps: solving pain points and delivering delight points. Initially, ELTA had to resolve the viewers’ frustration of being unable to watch. By expanding bandwidth and removing authentication barriers, they quickly restored access. Then, by offering free, open streaming, ELTA delighted audiences and regained goodwill. This dual approach minimized the crisis impact. Effective crisis management, she noted, relies on learning from past failures, preparing contingency plans, and always addressing both pain and delight.

Swift, Decisive, and Strategic — “Cut Fast, Cut Clean”
Chen summarized her management philosophy with “Cut fast, cut clean.” In a crisis, decisions must be made quickly and precisely — sacrificing short-term revenue for long-term trust. By temporarily giving up OTT income, ELTA protected its partners and audiences, ensuring a positive outcome. “If you don’t cut when you must,” she said, “you’ll lose control entirely.”

From Setback to Success — ELTA’s Resurgence
From the setback of the 2016 Rio Olympics to the rebound of 2018’s major events — the PyeongChang Winter Olympics, Russia World Cup, Jakarta-Palembang Asian Games, and Buenos Aires Youth Olympics — ELTA achieved exceptional results, closing 2018 with resounding success.

Every December, Google releases its annual keyword search rankings, highlighting the most searched terms and trending topics in Taiwan. In 2018, the globally celebrated “FIFA World Cup” not only claimed the No. 1 spot but also helped related topics such as “Sports Lottery” and “ELTA,” the official broadcaster, secure the 4th and 9th places on Google Taiwan’s top trending search list — demonstrating the enormous popularity of the tournament.

World Cup Fever Drives 120 Million Page Views for ELTA
Looking back at June 2018, it truly was a “nationwide World Cup frenzy.” Despite being held in Russia, the favorable match times and high-profile games drew massive attention from Taiwanese audiences. During the tournament, ELTA TV’s website recorded 120 million page views, averaging 4.31 million per day. During the group stage, unique daily viewers reached 1.03 million, and the final match drew 1.3 million viewers — all breaking site records. ELTA CEO Sally Chen fondly recalled that during the World Cup, whether in stores or on people’s phones, you could always hear the familiar voice of ELTA’s sports anchor Hung Chih-Wei. In front of Sports Lottery shops, crowds gathered to watch live matches — for that entire month, everyone’s life revolved around football, from team results and star players to betting odds and predictions.

World Cup Popularity Boosts ELTA’s Search Rankings
The World Cup’s massive popularity was also reflected in online searches, as people frequently looked up match schedules, broadcast information, ELTA’s TV listings, and betting odds. As a result, “World Cup” topped Google Taiwan’s 2018 trending keyword and topic lists, while “Sports Lottery” and “ELTA” ranked 4th and 9th respectively. According to CEO Sally Chen, the rise of these keywords shows not only how passionate Taiwanese fans were about football, but also how actively they sought information online. Additionally, ELTA’s decision to make the World Cup available for free without login further fueled search traffic, setting new viewership records. Meanwhile, the 2018 Jakarta–Palembang Asian Games — co-broadcast by ELTA and other networks — also entered Google’s trending topics list at No. 6, thanks to Team Taiwan’s impressive 17 gold, 19 silver, and 31 bronze medals.

Google Taiwan 2018 Top Rising Search Keywords:
1. World Cup 2. Story of Yanxi Palace 3. Earthquake 4. Sports Lottery 5. Central Election Commission 6. Ruyi’s Royal Love in the Palace 7. Referendum 8. Han Kuo-yu 9. ELTA 10. Vote Counting

Google Taiwan 2018 Top Rising Search Topics:
1. World Cup 2. Local Elections & Referendums 3. Earthquake 4. Typhoon Class Suspensions 5. Travel Frog 6. Asian Games 7. Chunghwa Telecom 499 Plan 8. Taichung Flora Expo 9. Honey Lemon 10. Puyuma Train Derailment