Zhang Chaoyang: TV series are still the "staple food" of Sohu Video

January 30 (Reporter Zhang Zhichang) After the full implementation of the "foreign restriction order" issued by the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television on overseas dramas, and the end of the first year of self-production of video websites in 2014, the video website industry in 2015 temporarily entered a low period of content selection.

On the afternoon of January 29, at the celebration party for the TV series "Silent Separation" held by Sohu Video, Sohu CEO Zhang Chaoyang said that Sohu Video has achieved great success in purchasing and broadcasting TV series, whether they are domestic TV series or American TV series; if domestic TV series and American TV series are butter and bread respectively, then TV series content can be said to be still the "staple food" of Sohu Video.

"Staple food" may not be enough

The restrictions on overseas dramas on video websites have been tightened again and again. According to radio and television policies, in addition to content and quantity requirements, there are also strict systems such as review before broadcast and unified registration. This policy change has directly led to major video websites adopting a cold attitude towards imported dramas.

Zhang Chaoyang once said that there are three driving forces for the development of Sohu Video: domestic TV series, self-produced TV series, and imported TV series and movies. It is undeniable that the tightening of the "foreign restriction order" will cause the advantage of American TV series that Sohu Video focuses on to gradually decline, and self-produced content will not become the main force in the video website industry in a short period of time; therefore, the introduction and purchase of domestic TV series content has become what Zhang Chaoyang calls "staple food".

It is reported that the romantic idol drama "Why Sheng Xiao Mo" instantly surpassed Hunan Satellite TV's opening drama "The Empress of China" after it was broadcast on TV. It was broadcast on five major video websites, including Sohu Video, iQiyi, Tencent Video, LeTV, and Tudou. The distribution of copyrights is rare and extreme. This also reflects the extreme demand of the video website industry for domestic TV series and even high-quality domestic TV series after the "foreign restriction order" was truly implemented at the beginning of the new year.

Of course, judging from the distribution of "Fall in Love with You" in the video website industry, it is still uncertain whether "staple" content such as domestic TV series can meet users' demand for video websites, and whether the impact of domestic dramas on major video websites will become a major factor in 2015.

The only thing we can be sure of is that there is really not enough food.

Snacks need to be more delicious

In addition to the American drama content that it has always boasted about, Sohu Video, or Zhang Chaoyang himself, is also optimistic about its own drama content.

Zhang Chaoyang publicly stated in early 2014 that 2014 would be the first year of self-production for the video website industry. In response, Sohu Video has successively invested in and produced high-rated self-produced dramas such as "Diaosi Man", "Jipin Lady", "Fleeting Time", "Water Margin Academy", and "Secret and Great". Other video websites have also followed suit in terms of self-produced content, and no longer limit their self-produced content to TV dramas, but have expanded to variety shows, micro-films, talent shows and other video content that traditional TV stations have.

However, after the first year of self-produced dramas in 2014, we can still see that the limitations of self-produced dramas’ own content creation capabilities have led to the fact that most self-produced dramas still have shortcomings such as short duration, few episodes, and lack of content. At the same time, because all video websites want to improve brand differentiation through self-produced content, they have hindered the promotion of high-quality self-produced dramas on multiple platforms.

Zhang Chaoyang also said that in the future, the largest amount of content will still have to be purchased from the market, because self-made content cannot guarantee the success rate.

Since 2015, relevant departments, led by the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television, have also begun to increase supervision of online self-made content. The number of "bad dramas" with crude content and no bottom line may be greatly reduced, while more carefully produced works such as "Fleeting Time" will surely appear.

After the implementation of new policies such as the "foreign restriction order" and the shortage of high-quality domestic TV series, users' demand for online self-made content will increase accordingly. This will eventually lead to a significant increase in the output of self-made TV series on video websites in 2015, and an improvement in quality.

By then, if you are not full with the “staple food”, you can still use “snacks” to satisfy your cravings.

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.