After several rounds of reshuffles, will the online video industry landscape change in 2015?

Since the birth of the first video website in China in 2005, the online video industry has been developing continuously in China for ten years. After several rounds of reshuffles , from piracy to regulation, from hundreds to thousands of companies to only a dozen, the industry has entered a relatively stable development stage. Will the video website industry change again in 2015 ?

The online video industry has entered a period of rational development

Especially after 2015, the online video industry was very quiet and peaceful. This is because with the full penetration of the mobile Internet era, major players in the video industry such as iQiyi, Youku Tudou, Tencent Video, Sohu Video, and Phoenix Video have basically completed the transition of users from PC to mobile terminals. Especially after the three-year mobile terminal decisive battle from 2012 to 2014, major video websites have basically found their own positions.

At present, with the industry basically cleaned up of piracy and pornographic content, there should not be another sudden death like Qvod in the short term. After Xunlei Kankan was sold for 120 million yuan, the probability of mergers and acquisitions in the industry is getting smaller and smaller. Even Sohu Video, which was previously the most likely to be sold, Zhang Chaoyang has made it clear that he will not sell it easily. Others such as Tencent Video and Phoenix Video are not for sale because of their strategic business as news platforms.

Compared with the blind spending of major video websites before 2015, they have become more rational and cautious in purchasing external dramas, and no longer buy dramas whenever they see them. This is because the homogeneous content makes the cost-effectiveness of purchasing dramas low, and major video websites tend to purchase exclusive copyrights; secondly, the self-production capabilities of major websites are steadily improving. While reducing the purchase of dramas, self-production programs can effectively enrich the platform.

Video websites "defend instead of attack" to strengthen their own advantages

In addition, after ten years of development, major video websites have not only established their own industry positions, but have also gradually clarified their own content direction and brand positioning. At present, except for a few "rich and willful" iQiyi, Youku Tudou, Tencent Video and others that are still pursuing comprehensive and rich content, other video websites have gradually moved towards differentiated content and brand directions.

For example, Sohu Video, which was very aggressive in the past few years, has adjusted its content strategy. Zhang Chaoyang, the current CEO of Sohu Video , has made it clear when releasing the fourth quarter financial report of 2014: "Sohu Video will reduce the purchase of external videos in 2015, and will increase its efforts in self-made content, such as "Diaosi Men", "The Best Lady" and "Fleeting Time". At present, in addition to mainly adhering to the previous route of being the first platform for American dramas, Sohu Video is more likely to produce its own flagship programs.

Phoenix Video, which also originated from the portal media like Sohu Video, has gradually clarified its development direction and content strategy. In terms of content creation, Phoenix Video aims to make the documentary channel its most core content. Moreover, documentaries have always been the trump card column of Phoenix Video. On the one hand, Phoenix Video relies on Phoenix Satellite TV to accumulate rich documentaries in history, military, society and characters; on the other hand, Phoenix Video has been strengthening and consolidating its documentary advantages in recent years. In particular, it has held documentary festivals three times in a row, which has established its brand position as the preferred broadcasting platform for documentaries. Recently, Phoenix Video has launched a nine-month "Record Creation Event" to continue to strengthen its dominant position in documentaries.

Video websites focus on self-production, with PGC becoming the focus

Moreover, as TV stations tighten their control over copyrighted programs and the cost of purchasing dramas continues to rise year after year, since 2014, major video websites have tacitly reached a consensus on reducing external purchases, strengthening self-produced programs and developing PGC (professionally produced content).

However, when it comes to major video websites, the methods and emphases of developing PGC platforms are different. Platforms such as iQiyi and Tencent Video mainly develop PGC by signing contracts with major content providers or well-known self-media people with production capabilities. For example, Tencent Video recently signed contracts with Baozou Comics and Xudu Bar, and iQiyi signed contracts with Gao Xiaosong and Wu Xiaobo. This strategy of developing PGC is simple and crude. If you want to get more content, you need to sign contracts with more content providers. It is suitable for "rich and willful" website platforms.

Phoenix Video has chosen another path to develop PGC, which is to improve the content production level of professional netizens through a series of offline activities, so as to achieve the goal of promoting the development of PGC on the platform. Just last month, at the Asian Sunshine Documentary Conference held in Guangzhou, Phoenix Video officially launched the "Record Creation Movement", hoping to encourage domestic documentary enthusiasts to actively upload their own short films, cultivate a group of professional documentary enthusiasts through master selection and training, and prepare for Phoenix Video's documentary PGC platform. In order to further expand its influence, Phoenix Video has also reached a cooperation with the Beijing International Film Festival. During the film festival, the "Record Creation Movement" will be an important unit for the screening and promotion of documentaries.

Overall, in 2015, the online video industry will not see too many changes. The general direction of the industry development has been determined. All parties will continue to strengthen their own content, and PGC is the top priority. iQiyi, Youku Tudou, Tencent Video, etc. will continue to develop into comprehensive video platforms, while Sohu Video, Phoenix Video, etc. will become broadcasting platforms with absolute advantages in special content and columns. In the competition for users, many parties will be in a stalemate, and the entire video industry will enter a new stage of "defense instead of offense."

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.