Film and TV industry given new energy

People watch a film in a movie theatre in Beijing on July 24, 2020. Image People's Daily Online/Weng Qiyu.

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Integrating China's film & TV industry with the internet is strengthening both, People’s Daily Online

China's film and TV industry, severely impacted by the COVID-19 outbreak, has received a new lease of life after being integrated with the Internet industry.

Chinese experts point out that, as epidemic prevention and control becomes the norm and cinemas gradually resume business, internet giants have become more integrated with film and TV.

The pattern of "Internet + Film & TV" will further promote the development and progress of each link in the film and TV chain industry.

Here's why: Chinese data shows that consumption of online videos grew rapidly in the first quarter of this year. In February alone, the average netizen watched online videos nearly 80 times per month on a single device, an increase of 23.2 times over the same period in 2019. The average daily usage time exceeded 2 hours, with a year-on-year increase of 21.2 minutes.

Since March, frequency of online video usage has continued to increase. In addition, 415 online movies were released in the first quarter of this year, up 22 per cent year on year. Several theatrical films are also premiering on online platforms.

Insiders say internet enterprises generally have abundant funds at their disposal, while their broadcast platforms are not restricted by the traditional scale of channels – and are less affected by external factors.

When Internet enterprises extend their business into the film & TV industry, they can expand at a low cost and help increase customer loyalty.

This year a number of short video platforms have been expanding into the "long video" field. During the Spring Festival, New Year movies premiered online on platforms such as Douyin and Toutiao.

In March, a company affiliated to Douyin was established, with one of its main business operations being film and TV production and distribution.

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