Mother, baby platform banks on online paid knowledge services

Dingxiang Mama, a maternal and infant knowledge platform under Dingxiangyuan, an online health information service provider, is banking on online paid knowledge services and will increase investments through offering online lessons related to pregnancy, childbirth and parenting to help moms eradicate anxiety.

"The paid knowledge services have accounted for about 80 percent of the total revenue of Dingxiang Mama, with the number of paying customers surpassing 800,000," said Chu Yang, vice-president of Dingxiangyuan, founder of Dingxiang Doctor and Dingxiang Mama.

Chu said he is bullish about the prospects of online paid content, while noting the maternal and infant segment is the biggest in the health industry.

The post-1990s have become a major driving force in the maternal and infant goods market. The main users of Dingxiang Mama come from first- and second-tier cities with high education and high income, and have a huge demand for pregnancy and parenting knowledge from the internet, said Du Yidan, head of Dingxiang Mama.

"We have more than 800 experts, most of whom are doctors from Chinese hospitals with 3A grade, the highest of China's three-tier grading system for public hospitals, and a reviewing committee that is composed of more than 1,000 people," Du said.

The company has launched maternity "college" for pregnant women in the first trimester, teaching them how to prepare for pregnancy and supplement nutrients, as well as care for newborns.

More content will be introduced in the future. Users can independently choose courses and customize learning plans based on their own needs, Du added.

Market research and consulting group iResearch said China's online paid knowledge industry is expecting explosive growth in the next three years. Its revenue is expected to skyrocket to 23.5 billion yuan($3.4 billion) in 2020 from 4.91 billion yuan in 2017.

Statistics from the consultancy also showed revenue from the maternal and infant market reached 2.5 trillion yuan in 2018, and the figure is expected to reach 3 trillion yuan in 2020.