Who will win when online dramas overtake traditional TV dramas?

The current TV drama ratings remain sluggish, while the click volume of online dramas shows a rising trend.

What is the difference between the audience of online dramas and the audience of living room TV that causes such a big gap?

According to a set of data from Sofres, the mainstream audience of prime-time TV dramas is middle-aged women, mainly aged 45-54. Even on Hunan Satellite TV, which focuses on young content, the majority of viewers are still middle-aged women; while the age of the audience of online dramas is concentrated between 20 and 29. From the perspective of the audience, the two age groups have obvious differences in their demand for content.

Known as the No. 1 IP in online literature, "Grave Robbers' Chronicles" first tried the waters with a pay-per-view online drama, starring "fresh meat" Li Yifeng and Yang Yang. Although fans of the original novel were dissatisfied with the adaptation of the drama, and the 5-cent special effects and simple production were also criticized, the number of hits easily exceeded 2 billion. The industry believes that the victory of the online drama "Grave Robbers' Chronicles" is not a victory in content, but a victory of online literature IP and fan economy. If "Grave Robbers' Chronicles" is broadcast on a traditional TV platform, it may not be a qualified work.

Of course, while emerging video websites are shooting online dramas in an attempt to counterattack TV platforms, traditional film and television companies have also set their sights on online dramas. In fact, more and more traditional film and television companies have begun to get involved in online dramas. The standard configuration of online dramas is online novel IP + young actors, and the director and producer are generally newcomers; the lineup of traditional TV dramas is even stronger. When using the traditional TV drama lineup to shoot online dramas, I believe that the click rate of online dramas will be even higher, and counterattacking TV platforms will become the norm. After all, with online literature IP and a large number of fans, once the quality of film and television dramas goes up, it would be incredible if they did not set off a viewing frenzy on TV platforms.

Another phenomenal TV series this year, Nirvana in Fire, is also adapted from an online literary IP, but the situation is very different from that of The Lost Tomb. Produced by a traditional film and television company, Nirvana in Fire first sparked a viewing craze among netizens after it was broadcast online, and then this trend spread to offline. As the series entered the latter stages of its broadcast, the ratings on traditional TV platforms continued to rise, achieving a comeback.

If "Grave Robbers' Chronicles" was unable to be broadcast on TV platforms due to the quality of its subject matter, then the counterattack of "Nirvana in Fire" can perhaps be regarded as a victory for online dramas.

Traditional film and television companies have turned to the online drama camp, and the "one drama, two stars" policy is undoubtedly one of the driving forces behind it. After all, video websites are the "third star" outside of satellite TV platforms. With the maturity of the VIP model of video websites such as iQiyi and LeTV, the economic benefits of film and television companies have become visible, and a young entertainment economic circle centered on online IP has been "created".

The order of first broadcasting on TV stations and then on video websites may also be changed in the future. Take the TV series "Shushan Wars" as an example. It pioneered the "VIP exclusive" model of video websites and innovated the "first online and then TV" model: iQiyi broadcasts 10 episodes per month, and TV stations broadcast 1.5 rounds of daily broadcasts during the winter vacation. Video websites will then open free broadcast rights according to the progress of satellite TV broadcasts. In order to increase the interest of the audience, the online version and the TV version will be different in terms of editing location, method, technique, suspense setting and even music.

Online novels are the seeds of IP, and online dramas are the "experimental fields" of IP. There will be subsequent developments such as movies, games, and peripherals. Many industry insiders believe that the momentum of online dramas counterattacking traditional TV platforms is unstoppable, and it is only a matter of time before middle-aged women in the living room are drawn into this young entertainment economy.

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.