Narrating 2.0 – The Boom of Audio Sharing Portals in China

IoT Opens up a Future Market

Experts predict a rosy future for the IoT in particular, from which the market for audio streaming should also benefit considerably. More and more of our everyday devices could soon be connected directly to the Internet.

These are forecasts that make the providers of audio sharing services extremely optimistic.

“We have even received cooperation requests from manufacturers of light bulbs and refrigerators who want to keep the option open to integrate our content into their future products,” co-founder Chen said in Shanghai in 2015.

Yu Jianjun, CEO and co-founder of Ximalaya, expected the market volume for audio books and audio streaming in China to swell to RMB 300 billion (US $47.7 billion), as he told China Daily in mid-2017. The tech entrepreneur estimated that entire industry chains, including authors, publishers, professional speakers, and app developers, could benefit from the boom.

According to surveys by Beijing-based Internet consulting firm Analysys, the market for audio books has already experienced impressive growth in recent years.

In 2016, the market volume of the industry amounted to an impressive RMB 2.2 billion. According to forecasts, this figure is expected to rise to around RMB 4.2 billion by the end of 2018.

Music producer Gao Xiaosong launched his own talk shows on Qingting FM last year.

But it is not audio books alone that provide audio sharing services in China with such a large user influx. In addition to domestic and foreign audio book titles, the portals also feature numerous listening formats of other styles, including a wide variety of music programs, news formats, talk shows, and audio features as well as podcast courses for every taste.

While the podcasts were initially recorded by amateur speakers and reading enthusiasts in their private living rooms, the formats have now become noticeably more professional.

As it gains momentum, an increasing number of celebrities from the entertainment industry as well as Internet celebrities have also jumped on the bandwagon.

Instead of simply reading existing works, China’s podcast sharing platforms today offer a wealth of originally created content and formats with regular updates, which are directly delivered to the mobile phones of the fan community via subscribed program channels.