Era of viewer-cum-broadcaster dawns in China

People, who are called "hosts", speak to their audiences through live video streaming platforms. The year 2015 witnessed an explosion of online live show platforms with a market value of at least 12 billion yuan ($1.8 billion).ZHANG WEITAO/CHINA DAILY

"A lot of professionals enjoy setting up another business in their spare time. For me, an online live show is a good choice. It might help to some extent in promoting my new physical store and online retail business as I'll be able to attract more fans with live shows. There are no high entry barriers in this line and the money is also quite satisfactory," she said.

Interactive online video content is a big hit with Chinese viewers, a fact that is driving the evolution of live streaming. According to China Consumer Trends 2016, a report published by global market consultancy Mintel, "interactive" is one of the four buzzwords in the consumer sector this year.

Consumers of content are willing to pay for high-quality, uninterrupted live streams. Mintel research highlights that video is the most popular format of online content consumed in China. As many as 83 percent of internet surfers watch videos on their desktops and 73 percent of tablet users view videos. Some 38 percent of Chinese consumers are paid subscribers of streams. Another 31 percent said they would be willing to try viewing pay streams.

"Among online media formats, video is a powerful storytelling instrument that can vividly convey a message and entertain an audience at the same time. With the 'new norm' of live streaming, everyone can be a content creator and a broadcaster, with true ownership of personal media content," said Philix Liu, Mintel's APAC trends analyst.

Live streams satisfy consumers' need for online interactions as Chinese netizens are highly social and active in voicing their opinions. It was the "bullet screen" feature, used in films and TV shows to beam viewer comments or remarks across the screen in real time, that sparked consumer interest in online participation, according to the report.

"Chinese e-commerce company Bolome is tapping into this interest in instant interaction by blending it with live streaming and online shopping. Live streaming also taps into many different aspects in consumers' daily life. Recently launched home robotics systems, such as A.I. Nemo, live-streams the happenings at home straight to the user's mobile device," said Liu.

Looking ahead, the possibilities brought by live video streams open up a whole new world of sensational experiences and entertainment to consumers. Live streaming is also an effective marketing channel for brands. With better video and recording technology, live streaming will be more interactive, more immersive and more universal, the report said.