Chinese-American NBA star Jeremy Lin (middle) plans streetball strategies on the show. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Yang Weidong, head of Youku, said the agreement reflects global recognition for their creativity in making niche programs for younger audiences.

"We used to wrongly think that we could succeed if we were able to give young people either new aesthetics, new knowledge, or new storytelling," he said. "However, we now realize that all three elements have to be included if we want to make a hit."

In Dunk of China, dramatic individual storylines are mixed to reflect the journey of the players and the energy of the modern Chinese youth, in order to give the audience an experience－while watching the two teams compete－similar to that of watching a high-stakes professional game.

"We cannot be satisfied with a one-time success," Yang says. "We need the vision for a bigger picture to break the bottleneck of quality."

Consequently, 2018 has so far been successful for Youku, which has churned out several hit variety shows which would have probably been overshadowed by its stable of online drama series in previous years.

This Is Fighting Robots introduced the concept of robotic battles to a Chinese audience and gained 8.1 points on Douban, while Street Dance of China quickly became a phenomenon, winning 8.6 points on the same site and was licensed to be broadcast in Southeast Asian countries, such as Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand.

Contact the writer at wangkaihao@chinadaily.com.cn