The popularity of "I Am a Singer" was demonstrated by the amount of time major Taiwanese TV stations gave to broadcasting the show. In fact, news stations that broadcast the finale of the show have found themselves in deep water for doing so.

Cable news channels ETTV and CTi Television may each be fined due to their overnight broadcast of the TV show, the National Communications Commission (NCC) said. News channels are not supposed to devote so much of their programming to entertainment shows, and the coverage of the show also prevented the public from getting news reports, the NCC pointed out.

The two channels broadcast the last episode of "I Am a Singer" for as long as four hours, said the NCC, noting that it received complaints from viewers. Mainland China TV programs have to be sent to the Ministry of Culture for review before being broadcast, which did not happen in this case. This has led to concerns about China's growing cultural influence on Taiwan.

Of course, Taiwan has its own popular talent shows, but critics say local TV stations cannot afford to create a show like "I Am a Singer," which features stunning sound and lighting effects and movie-quality videos introducing singers' lives.

Taiwan probably still has the advantage in the Chinese-language pop music industry for the moment, Culture Minister Lung Ying-tai said, noting that even the mainland Chinese singers sang Taiwan-produced songs in the talent show. One of the two songs sung by winners Yu Quan, for example, was composed by Taiwan-born musician Lee Chung-sheng for another Taiwan-born singer, Chao Chuan, who wrote the lyrics.

Despite this fact, Lung acknowledged that Taiwan's entertainment industry faces challenges and the island's advantages in the pop music market may be fading quickly. "We need to cherish our creativity," said Lung.

Noting that Hunan Satellite TV has invested heavily in making "I Am a Singer" such a huge success, Lung said Taiwan must consider how it can retain its creativity and competitiveness with the country's relatively small economy. Taiwan must work harder to keep its edge in the entertainment industry, she warned. "Will Taiwan retain its abundant talents in pop culture 30 years from now?" she asked. This is now a question that many people are asking.