The regulatory winter has given rise to a new form of living room entertainment, which will be more fun

At the end of last month, the China Smart TV Industry Development Summit was held in Beijing for the first time at the China Internet Conference, attracting a large number of traditional TV manufacturers to participate. The summit marks the development trend of the deep integration of the traditional TV industry and the Internet: with the rapid development of Internet technology, the traditional TV industry is integrating into the Internet wave with an unprecedented positive attitude.

In 2014, smart hardware devices of various forms emerged, including smart TVs, TV boxes, and TV game consoles. Both hardware and software manufacturers have only one ultimate goal - to enrich TV screens by connecting to the Internet to fully meet market demand.

Like the development trend of all new things, the promising Internet TV industry has presented a tortuous and changeable status quo in the process of development. On the one hand, the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television has increasingly tightened its supervision of Internet TV video content, while on the other hand, the TV game market has developed rapidly after the policy was lifted. Video and games are the main content of Internet TV, and the official attitude of "tightening and loosening" has led to a "two-sided situation".

Recently, the radio and television industry has carried out a series of rectifications on the video content in Internet TV and TV boxes, from forcibly promoting TVOS, to stopping the issuance of Internet TV integrated licenses, canceling the live broadcast and playback functions of Internet TV, to UI design violations and the removal of video website APPs from smart TV platforms. The frequent issuance of government orders has made the road of Internet TV video content more and more difficult, so it is no wonder that the industry has expressed grief, saying that "Internet TV has entered an unprecedented cold winter."

In sharp contrast to Internet TV videos, TV games have rapidly gained popularity in just a few months. TV manufacturers, Internet companies, game developers, operators and channel providers have all started to make efforts, and even video companies such as iQiyi and LeTV have shown great interest.

In this regard, Lu Renbo, deputy secretary-general of the China Electronic Commerce Association, believes that the result of policy control may be that TV stations are protected, while TV boxes are developing more vigorously in another form. For example, the box can provide more family entertainment content, such as video games, and the box can also become a series of smart homes. This is the future development direction of TV boxes and the route with the most core competitiveness.

Whether it is "winter" or "spring", the heated discussions in the industry and the media's coverage show that as the core product of users' living room entertainment, Internet TV has attracted much attention from all walks of life. After all, users' enthusiasm for living room entertainment will never go out. The strict supervision of radio and television has allowed manufacturers to fully explore Internet thinking and has also spawned various living room entertainment terminals.

Various types of game boxes are the first to be affected. Under the premise that the video route is blocked, the concept of game micro-consoles has gradually been accepted by users under the education of the trend of game consoles entering China. For example, Funbox launched by Zhongjiu can not only run Android games, but also take into account video functions, which can meet users' video needs.

The concept of "playing both games and videos" has also been adopted by traditional hardware manufacturers. TCL's newly launched 7V box, Konka's gaming TV, and ZIVOO box all use gaming content as an important part of their content, and emphasize telling consumers during product promotion that TV is not only for watching, but also for playing.

Another new smart hardware product that is performing well is the smart projection device. For example, the "Titanium Potato Tatoo" released by Tudou and the XGIMI screenless TV are another form of "box". Their picture terminals are no longer TV screens but any blank wall. The convenience, novelty, fashion, and low environmental restrictions make smart projection devices popular among young people.

In addition to the frequent release of new hardware devices, various applications for the large screen in the living room have also emerged. For example, "Youku XL" is a combination of the HD version for tablets and the TV version for smart TVs /boxes. It has to be said that such a classification is the product of "racking one's brains". There is also a similar "Baidu TV Assistant", where users can push applications and videos to the TV side through the mobile phone APP software. In this way, the "two-in-one" approach is likely to become a new way of playing for video websites and Internet companies in the future.

The recent strong supervision by the competent authorities is intended to allow the Internet TV industry to develop in a healthy and orderly manner. After all, large-screen TVs are not for individuals but for family members of all ages. It is believed that based on the strong demand of users for living room entertainment and the continuous development of Internet technology, living room entertainment will not stop due to supervision. In the future, more forms of smart terminals and software products will be born to make the living room more beautiful and fun.

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.