Industry upheaval
"I believe that live video broadcasting will subvert many traditional sectors," Zhou Hongyi, founder of China's leading antivirus software firm Qihoo 360 Technology Co, told Web users in mid-June via a live video broadcasting app dubbed Huajiao.
Zhou has not only developed his own live video broadcasting app, but also invested in start-ups like Huajiao, which was founded in June 2015.
Many expect that the domestic television industry will be the first to take a hit from this new way of spreading information.
"Unlike TV programs, live-streaming videos are not one-way content produced by TV stations, but can be generated by anyone in the world, which are more appealing to viewers who have the chance to immediately share videos and interact with generators or other viewers instantly," Zhou said.
As for Alibaba, the e-commerce giant is trying to employ new technologies, including live videos, to transform the way people buy goods.
Compared with text and photos, real-time videos can be a better way to stimulate consumers' desire to shop online, a PR representative with Alibaba told the Global Times on Monday.
In June, Huajiao inked an agreement with the online travel agency Tuniu to explore new methods of marketing and promote tourism products via real-time videos.
In one live broadcast on Huajiao, film star Yan Danchen sent out tourism coupons while taking a cruise ship to Japan.
The broadcast brought more than 1 million yuan ($149,000) in sales to Tuniu, according to information provided by Huajiao on Tuesday.
Given the platforms' efforts, China's live video broadcasting industry is projected to be worth 106 billion yuan by the end of 2020, up from the 12 billion yuan in 2015, according to a report issued by Hua Chuang Securities in April.
A bumpy road ahead
Every new industry needs time to mature, and live video broadcasting is no exception, experts said.
"If the road to success is 400 meters long, we've gone only 40 meters," Liu said.
He noted that the platform operators have yet not found a feasible and effective business model.
Currently, most platforms can only share some portion of income earned by public figures or cyber celebrities whose live videos amass lots of fans who are willing to pay for the content.
"This kind of business model has limits, as the broadcasting content of cyber celebrities and public figures are similar to each other and may easily bore viewers," Alibaba's PR representative said.
In addition, many have not yet embraced this new form of social media.
"The content needs to be further diversified to woo audience of all ages," said Huajiao's representative, who required to remain anonymous.
According to Huajiao, most of its users were born in the 1990s or later.
Tsai said he started live broadcasting because he could not find any other streams that captured his interest, domestic media reported Monday.
The live video broadcasting industry also faces the challenge of filtering the growing amount of violent, pornographic and other content deemed vulgar by the authorities.
The Ministry of Culture said at a press briefing in April that they would issue measures to regulate the live video broadcasting industry and urged about 19 live-streaming video apps to remove inappropriate content.
The current live video broadcasting industry is a mixed market with no dominators or clear regulation, said platform operators. In this case, Huajiao believed that whether an app can thrive and maintain its popularity depends on whether it can provide high-quality and diversified content.
