Original title: iQiyi began to restrict screen casting, why users are frequently "offended"
Recently, Youku has just adjusted the membership login rules to further limit the number of mobile phones that members can log into. At present, Youku can log in to up to 3 devices with the same member account, which is 2 less than the upper limit of iQiyi and Tencent Video. In this regard, there is a view that "Youku is a disguised price increase on the pretext of protecting the account, which is a shrinking of members' rights and interests." ”
However, just after Youku caused a lot of controversy over this matter, iQiyi also "followed in its footsteps" a few days ago and began to restrict the rights and interests of screen casting. According to user feedback, gold VIP members previously supported screen projection with the highest and highest 4K resolution, but now they can only choose the lowest 480P. In response, iQiyi customer service responded that if you need high-definition screen projection, you must open a platinum VIP or watch it directly on TV.
According to the current subscription service price of iQIYI, its platinum VIP membership is 198 yuan per year, and the price is between gold VIP and star diamond VIP. Because its platinum VIP rights can also be used on TV, the user's highest projection definition has reached the 4K MAX+HDR+Panoramic Sound) standard.
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In response to this matter, the Shanghai Municipal Consumer Protection Commission, which has previously commented on the issue of "advanced on-demand", said that "iQIYI APP's practice of restricting screen projection and charging is not generous".
Some users also said, "The purchase of iQIYI Gold membership was originally to cast the screen at home, but now the screen projection function has been forcibly castrated by iQIYI, so can I apply for a refund from iQIYI?" In addition, there are user "suggestions", "each video app can be more bold, such as pause, fast forward, fast rewind are charged, or the speed function also added to the membership rights (a certain network disk has been added)".
Although the rhetoric of these netizens is fierce and seems absurd, in fact, this is indeed the result of the arbitrary adjustment of paid membership rights and interests by video websites in recent years. In recent years, iYouteng has been criticized by many users for adjusting price increases, the need for higher-end members, and member-exclusive advertising, but if it is a violation, in fact, there are relevant avoidance regulations in each membership service agreement, and consumers do not seem to be reasonable.
In this regard, some lawyers frankly said that if the service items in the membership agreement do not include screen casting, there is no infringement. And because the video website provides audiovisual services, limited by factors such as file size, network transmission speed, hardware quality, etc., different broadcast terminals will have different audiovisual effects, so it is more appropriate to determine the category of use by the final broadcast end. This also means that although screen projection is a function of the APP, if the broadcast medium is TV, then it should be regarded as being used on the TV side.
In short, it makes sense if video sites are serious about classifying screen casting as part of the rights of TV members.
However, the reason why there will be a lot of opposition in the network, in addition to the original membership rights and interests being compressed in disguise, may be more that "the quality of the content is not worth the price". And whether it is raising prices, adjusting rights, or launching various types of advertising, video websites do not give users time to adapt and corresponding choices.
Taking iQIYI's restricted screen projection function as an example, the platinum VIP that "appeared out of thin air" inexplicably had corresponding rights, obviously to facilitate users with screen projection needs to choose this file.
At the same time, iQIYI also launched a new membership point service system on January 11, in the future, Star Diamond, Platinum, Gold and Student VIP members will receive corresponding membership points and can be exchanged for benefits. It is not difficult to find that like most membership point systems, the point system of video websites is also to improve retention and promote conversion.
However, for now, most of these benefits are related to membership and discount coupons for retail goods, and there are no directly redeemable "membership" or "member discounts". However, it cannot be ruled out that iQiyi may launch more attractive benefits in the future, such as extending the membership period or upgrading the membership stall.
In fact, in essence, like Youku and even many domestic online music platforms, iQiyi also encourages users to choose higher membership levels by compressing benefits. But do these content platforms really not think that they will cause user dissatisfaction? The answer is probably no.
It cannot be ignored that almost all the changes in video websites can cause an uproar. For example, "advanced on-demand" was previously named and criticized by the Shanghai Consumer Association and the China Consumer Association, which caused a large number of users' comments and attention, and the suspension of "advanced on-demand" also won the support of consumers.
However, whether it is for "advanced on-demand", "patch advertising", or the recent "member price increase", "shrinkage of rights" and other controversial topics, there are also views on analyzing the pros and cons from the perspective of company operations. These arguments tend to argue that because copyright, bandwidth, and server costs are too high, video sites can only increase revenue from users when they can't make a profit.
However, this also makes people think that video sites can implement relevant measures regardless of user experience, which may be due to the reasons that the expected benefits outweigh the losses, or it may be due to the need to explore user payment strategies.
Simply put, since the end of 2021, the price of iQiyi Gold VIP has risen from 15 yuan (continuous monthly subscription) to 25 yuan (continuous monthly subscription) today. It can also be seen from the official financial report that in recent years, the number of iQiyi's subscription members tends to fluctuate around 100 million, increasing and decreasing from time to time. Among them, the average number of daily subscribers in the third quarter of 2022 was 101 million, which is only 3 million less than the 104 million in 2019. But in contrast, iQiyi did break even in 2022, and its revenue still maintained growth.
In fact, this may already show that the adjustment of user rights and interests and membership prices at this stage may not have caused a large loss of user scale. And further, video sites may also be interested in testing users' bottom lines and trying to find more revenue possibilities.
While these changes that are not from the consumer's point of view may lead to a decrease in the number of subscribers, it seems that neither the platform nor the outside world can determine how much it will decrease, so it makes it more of an experiment, and if revenue can continue to grow, then the adjustment in membership benefits and pricing may not stop. Among them, the amount of high-quality content naturally becomes the fundamental way to reduce user resistance.
But if the results of the attempt are not satisfactory, will these head video sites "turn back".
[The picture in this article comes from the Internet]