Chinese Market Gaming Opportunities

According to Goldman Sachs Research, despite the massive online gaming market in China, the more compelling opportunity for local game developers and publishers may be to attract players from outside the country. The online gaming industry in China is expected to have 650 million users and $45 billion in sales by 2022, making it the largest market in the world. Even after Chinese regulators halted issuing licenses to monetize "banhao" gamings for nearly eight months, only to resume in April 2022, the company maintained its dominant position in the China market.

The majority of consumer behavior in China now occurs in the online gaming industry. Because of this, Chinese viewers will do everything they can to learn about products online, including watching videos with explanations, reading reviews or discussing brands on social media, and placing a premium on the advice of KOLs. Reduce your reliance on CPM/CPI in favor of more qualitative metrics like participation rate (views, engagements, followers, comments, etc.). True fans are more engaged when a higher proportion of followers' total participation (likes, comments, and sharing) is on a KOL's profile page.

The electronic market in China is complex since it is run locally. Weibo, Bilibili, Tiktok, Kwai, RED, and Douyu are some of the most critical market in the industry. Email is the most common way to get in touch with influential people, and their addresses are usually listed prominently on their websites. While smaller content creators sometimes deal with agencies directly, larger ones often work through agents. Since WeChat is so simple to use, it has become the standard for all communication. Most Chinese sites don't make use of tracking URLs. In contrast, creators' profiles and official tools like Huahuo and Bojianger can be used to gain access to insights and statistics so you can measure performance of campaign easily; however, doing so requires the provision of legally qualifying paperwork and other required firm credentials.

Three prominent platforms stand out in the industry of digital market in China. These platforms contribute to the digital industry in China by giving people numerous ways to share their own content, connect with others, and pass the time.

Shanghai-based One of the destinations in China market. At first, it was primarily dedicated to ACG (animation, comics, and games), but later, other types of media were included. These days, people can watch anything from e-sports to technology to music to dance to movies to TV dramas to educational programming to personal vlogs. It's also capable of real-time streaming.

According to the claims, "One in every two young people in China is a Bilibili user," with the majority of its individual being members of Generation Z. Bilibili's danmu, or "bullet comments," are what set the service apart from the competition. These comments appear on top of the film and move from right to left across the screen as it plays.


Bilibili Categories + Users Engagement

Bilibi's primary categories include "Lifestyle," "Gaming," "Tech & Knowledge," and "Anime." Gaming can be broken down into nine distinct genres: combat gaming, multiplayer gaming, mobile gaming, internet gaming, board gaming, music gaming, gross merchandise volume (GMV), mugen, and gaming events. They are the cultural trendsetters of China market and represent a distinct subset of the Chinese internet population industry. 94% of all video views come from professional user-generated content (PUGV).

The level of user engagement is pretty high, particularly among the most influential users. Regarding online gaming, Bilibili lacks integration, and content creators frequently produce standalone movies or host live streams for individual gaming—a famous video-sharing industry in China with the aim of bettering the lives of young people there. Among the users of this platform, those under 35 make up over 86%. It has exclusive broadcasting rights to the e-sports tournament and signed several main streams.


IM Opportunities: Bilibili Influencer Marketing Formats

• Popular formats: dedicated videos, video + e-commerce hyperlink, live-streaming + e-commerce hyperlink. No integration format is used.
• Organic Boost/Delayed Performance: the video release within 72h is the traffic growth burst period, probably will have a 10-20% increase after the release.
• Other ways to increase traffic: Ads purchase, trending.

By the end of the year 2020, the vast majority of the platform's videos will have been created by its influencers and posted as PUGV. Huahuo (花火平台) is Bilibili's newest service, and it's all about helping businesses and artists connect with one another. Individuals can earn free virtual currency called "Coins" simply by signing up and using it on a daily basis. A coin is only worthwhile when it is used to reward producers for their work.

One of the most popular video-sharing and live-streaming apps in the market on China is Kuaishou, also known as Kwai outside of China. It has 220 million participants as of the Q4 of 2022 and is the leading platform for the community market.


Users Engagement

Its primary audience is young people in China, second-tier cities, and rural areas, and it is well-known for its depictions of life outside of the country's largest cities. Live broadcasting, gaming, advertising, virtual goods, and online shopping contribute significantly to market revenue.

• Online participants may do things like watch videos, share mundane occurrences from their lives, or do it for pleasure.
• The gaming category has seen ten billion page views.
• Frequent IM Topics include culinary arts, competitive sports, academics, gaming, tourism, and more. Almost eighty percent of Kwai participants had been gaming for at least five years.
• Most Popular Gaming in SLG, Sports, and Casual Settings.

Top 3 KOLS Gamers In China

The top three Kols online gaming industry in China is Xianmenmen, with 980,000 followers and an average of 10k views, Xiaokoujiao with 4,837,000 followers and an average of 30,000 views; and Haitang, with 1,981,000 followers and an average of 150,000 views. Xianmenmen focuses on casual gaming, Xiaokoujiao specializes in GKART, a racing game, and Haitang is known for MOBA gaming.

DouYu is one of the most popular websites in China, and its content focuses on gaming, entertainment, arts, sports, and other outdoor broadcasts. Being a leader in the eSports value chain, the platform is accessible via PC and mobile apps, allowing individuals to take part in live-streaming experiences that are both immersive and participatory.


Douyu + Users Engagement

Douyu is a popular platform for live-streaming videos in China. The "Chinese Twitch" of China is the premier streaming platform for gaming and other live events. Streaming gaming in real-time on a desktop computer, a console, or a mobile device. Douyu boasts 433 million active monthly viewers and numerous popular instant messaging (IM) categories like "gaming," "esports," "entertainment," "dancing," "outdoor," and many more.

Douyin/TikTok is where users upload, view, and find new content. The app serves as a platform for young people to produce and share films in which they engage in many forms of artistic expression, including but not limited to singing, dancing, comedy, and lip-syncing.

Douyin/TikTok is a popular app among teenagers for making and sharing short movies. The app is popular among a youthful, devoted fanbase. Many people place a high value on getting their films seen and obtaining followers on the app.


Douyin Marketing Formats

• The company's own game is promoted on the official account with an advertisement and an App Store download button.
• The platform offers live-streaming capabilities, similar to Twitch, allowing promotional activities and bonus rewards to enhance user engagement in the market.
• The company employs influencer marketing strategies by creating dedicated videos featuring influencers and including hyperlinks for seamless promotion.

Local game developers and publishers in China may discover that focusing on international players offers the greatest opportunity to profit from the country's massive online gaming market. The gaming market in China is unrivaled, with predictions of 650 million users and $45 billion in sales by 2022. In modern-day China, shopping is done primarily online. As a result, Chinese viewers will rely heavily on the recommendations of KOLs. They will do everything possible to learn as much as possible about things online, including viewing videos with explanations, reading reviews, discussing brands on social media, etc.