2023 is coming to an end, and looking back on the whole year, the content competition on video platforms is still fierce. From the beginning of the year, "Hurricane" triggered the whole people to chase dramas, "Going to a Windy Place" boosted Dali tourism, to the summer file "Sauvignon Blanc Season 1" set off an ancient puppet craze, and then to the end of the year "News Queen" has made Hong Kong dramas the focus of public discussion again...... In the increasingly volatile content industry, various platforms have rolled up their own highlights.
In 2023, which video platform will produce the most popular models? Which content has successfully come out of the circle and achieved applause? How does the content industry stick to its original intention, and what are the new trends?
At the end of the year, Nandu Entertainment focused on the drama variety project and launched the annual observation of the video platform, which will take you to interpret the trends of the content industry throughout the year.
Which platform has the most popular models?
The king of the drama of the year fell to iQiyi
The head variety show is mostly made of mangoes
For the platform, the contribution of head dramas and variety shows in membership subscription revenue and advertising investment revenue is unmatched by other projects. Creating a hit is an important goal of the long video platform. Which platform will have the upper hand in the fierce content competition in 2023?
In terms of dramas, the market performance is generally more active than last year. iQiyi, which occupies the largest share of the head, can be said to be the biggest winner this year, but the four major platforms have improved compared with last year and refreshed their respective "explosive" results.
iQIYI's solo drama "Hurricane" is not only far ahead with an average of more than 200 million effective playbacks of feature films, but also ranks first with the highest popularity in history of 83.91 in Guduo statistics, and is a well-deserved annual drama king. iQIYI's other head dramas also performed well, Yunhe data shows that in 2023, among the five solo dramas with more than 10,000 popularity on iQIYI station, in addition to "Hurricane", "Changfeng Crossing", "Lotus Building", "Ning An Like a Dream", and "Yi Nian Guan Mountain" The four works also entered the top ten of the effective broadcast annual list, occupying half of the country, and the tenth place "The Legend of Yunxiang" was also produced by iQiyi, but it was distributed to Tencent Video.
In contrast, Tencent Video is slightly inferior in the number of popular works, and only one solo work of "Sauvignon Blanc Season 1" has entered the top ten of the annual list this year, second only to the drama king "Hurricane", compared with last year's three results. However, judging from the average V30 data of Yunhe data, the broadcast volume of "Sauvignon Blanc Season 1" (69.02 million) during the hit period is better than last year's platform No. 1 "Xinghan Splendid" (43.4 million).
Youku is the most obvious improvement of the four major long video platforms. This year, "Long Moon Embers" ranked third on the list of effective broadcasts, refreshing the highest ranking record of Youku's solo dramas;At the same time, among the top ten works in the average episode V30 ranking, three works are Youku exclusive, with an average broadcast volume of more than 40 million episodes during the hit period, while last year, the highest data of Youku's solo episodes per capita V30 was only 33.32 million.
Mango TV's voice in the head drama market has never been high, but compared with last year, only one "The Bottom Line" simulcast with iQiyi entered the top 30 of the annual list, this year not only the simulcast drama "Homecoming" ranked 10th, refreshing the best results of the annual list, but the solo work "Going to a Windy Place" also ranked 22nd. Judging from the performance of the hit period, Mango TV has three collections this year, "Camp with Love", "Fireworks in My World" and "Going to a Windy Place", all of which have more than 20 million views, which is a great breakthrough compared with previous years.
From the point of view of public opinion, there is little difference in the volume of public opinion between the head dramas of various platforms, and among the sixteen dramas with the highest popularity in Guduo's history exceeding 80 this year, the share of Aiteng You is relatively average, six Tencent Video, five iQiyi, four Youku, and only one Mango TV.
In the field of variety shows, Mango TV, which is less competitive in the drama market, has made a beautiful comeback.
In the 2023 effective broadcast data of online variety shows according to Yunhe Data, three of the top five variety shows are broadcast exclusively on Mango TV, namely "Riding the Wind 2023", "The Eighth Season of the Great Detective" and "Overcoming Thorns Season 3". According to Guduo data, among the top ten online variety shows in the history of popularity this year, Mango TV has produced as many as six. In addition, iQiyi and Tencent Video also occupy three seats in the top ten effective broadcasts of online comprehensives, while Youku's performance in the field of variety shows this year is relatively mediocre and has no outstanding projects.
Content out of the circle, relying on word-of-mouth or controversy?
Tencent's trend of high-quality products is significant
Other platforms have their own popular dramas
In 2023, the long video platform will continue to adhere to the principle of "reducing costs and increasing efficiency", focusing on creating high-quality content and reducing waist projects.
In terms of variety shows, various platforms have made innovative attempts, such as Youku's "Drama Good Song", which combines film and television with music variety, Tencent created a hard-core and high-burning physical variety show "I Can 47", and iQiyi's high-scoring word-of-mouth variety show "Let's Farm the Land". However, in the face of a market where the audience is becoming more and more segmented, these variety shows do not have a "circle-breaking" effect at the level of influence, and lack phenomenal hits. The Douban score of "Let's Farm the Land" is as high as 9.0, but the number of effective rating users has not exceeded 60,000 so far.
In the drama track, there are many players out of the circle, and various platforms can be said to have taken out their housekeeping skills, from the beginning of the year to the end of the year. According to the statistics of Nandu Entertainment reporters, in 2023, there will be 23 mainland dramas with a Douban score of more than 8 points, of which 10 will have a score of 8.5 or more, which has increased compared with last year, and the effect of "improving quality and reducing quantity" on various platforms is significant.
It is worth mentioning that among several parent video platforms, the platform with the largest number of dramas with a Douban score of more than 8 points is Tencent, with a total of 9, of which 8 are solo dramas, more than one-third of the total. At the Tencent Film and Television Annual Release Conference held during the Shanghai TV Festival in June 2023, the word "boutique" was repeatedly mentioned. Sun Zhonghuai, vice president of Tencent and CEO of Tencent Online Video, once said in his speech that among all the content categories of Tencent Video, dramas are still the core. Tencent will take 100 dramas a year as its main goal, and further subdivide the four specific goals of "overall improvement, diversified content, increasing popular models, and reducing mediocrity".
Looking at Tencent dramas in 2023, many acclaimed and popular works are confirming its strategy: "The Long Season" uses an unsolved case as an introduction, and uses a subtle double-line parallel narrative structure to slowly tell the fate of a generation, and "snaps the fingers of resonance" with the majority of netizens, with a Douban score of 9.4, it has refreshed the highest record of domestic dramas in the past five years; In the summer file, it triggered a frenzy of chasing dramas with a high degree of restoration and delicate emotional lines, and let the audience rush the ancient puppet hit "Sauvignon Blanc" that was launched in the second season...... Tencent Video's determination to deepen the cultivation of high-quality products can be seen.
In addition, other platforms also have dramas out of the circle, such as iQiyi's "Hurricane" has become a phenomenal national hit at the beginning of 2023, Gao Qiqiang's actor Zhang Songwen, "sister-in-law" Gao Ye and other leading actors have exploded out of the circle one by one, "Tell Lao Mo that I want to eat fish", "Read Sun Tzu's Art of War, Pin Qiqiang's Life" and other various emojis and plot stalks have swiped social networks; The calm and slow-burning healing temperament has won the favor of a large number of netizens, "Bouquet Liu Yifei" has become the WeChat avatar of many people, and the simple and picturesque scenery of Dali in Yunnan has also become a popular check-in destination for countless tourists.
In addition, Station B's "Ancient Lovesickness" has become the surprise dark horse of the year, and the narrative method of "reverse crossing" is innovative and eye-catching, and the director Zhizhu, who has created popular short dramas such as "The Eldest Princess", has filmed long dramas to shoot photography and aesthetics are also online, so that this "small and beautiful" drama series with no IP, no traffic actors, and no high investment has a high score of 8.6 on Douban, and the word-of-mouth fermentation has become hot, and its influence continues to break the circle.
Of course, there are also some works that have the popularity of being out of the circle, but the evaluation is mixed, such as the ancient puppet drama "Long Moon Embers" on the Youku platform, which was highly anticipated for its exquisite costumes and makeup before the broadcast, but the effect in the finished film is not as expected, and the plot also has a lot of logical bugs, and it does not break through the inherent routines of fairy puppet dramas, resulting in an obvious lack of stamina for the show, with a Douban score of only 5.6.
There are also some works that are even "out of the circle in reverse" and take the "black and red" route. For example, Mango TV's two puppet dramas "Fireworks in My World" and "Love as the Camp", although the data of the two dramas were considerable when they were on the air, they were both criticized in terms of word-of-mouth, which caused station B to complain about the team building of the UP master. Not only is the actor's portrayal of the role stereotyped, the workplace-related plot suspended, and the protagonist's three views are also problematic, but the image style such as composition and camera movement is also unsatisfactory. Even if such content is "out of the circle", the impact on actors and platforms is mostly negative.
Does the old style still work?
Most of the comprehensive N generations are weak
The original team's new work "Failure"
After years of precipitation, each long video platform has its own brand advantage projects. Especially in the variety show track, in the context of the overall poor investment environment and the shrinking of brand budgets, capital usually prefers the popular IPs of previous years. In 2023, how will the variety shows exclusively produced by each platform perform?
Mango TV, which has always had advantages in the field of variety shows, continues to make efforts in the music variety track. Following last year's "The Sound of the Hong Kong Philharmonic Season", the IP will launch the same series of programs "The Sound of the Treasure Island Season" and "The Sound of the Treasure Island Season" and "The Sound of the Endless Family" in 2023.
Mango TV's other ace variety show IP "The Great Detective" also launched its eighth season this year, which is almost one of the most "long-lived" quarterly programs of domestic entertainment variety shows, and it is still able to have a Douban score of up to 8.7, which is not easy. Looking at the entire variety show market, there are still no other suspense variety shows that can become its substitute for its competitors, and the show has developed a fixed audience, which enables it to achieve continuous and stable serialized output.
In 2023, the lack of program innovation will be more obvious for the comprehensive N generation of various platforms. The program team of "Riding the Wind 2023" focuses on "internationalization" in casting, inviting overseas sisters such as Meiyi Liya, Zhifu, and Tang Bohu to compete on the same stage, and the concept of "30+ women" based on the original foothold is becoming weaker and weaker. Many sisters who are mainly actors are not ideal in their singing and dancing ability, and the topics that have aroused heated discussions are mostly negative words such as "greasy", "too hard" and "paddling", and finally only got a Douban score of 5.6.
Tencent's "Fifty Kilometers Peach Blossom Dock Season 3" is "stable and declining" on the basis of the second season, and the "acquaintance bureau" interaction between "650 Radio", "Tianjing Diyi", Wang Chuanjun, Xu Zhisheng and other old dock residents continues the highlight of the show, "Peach Blossom Dock 3" There are some "invalid guests" among the new dock residents, and there is no special surprise performance; iQiyi's "Summer of the Band Season 3" finally returned after three years, and the program includes "Big Dream" cooperated by Wayina and Ren Suxi Such a moving work out of the circle, but the other side of the industry's more mature and commercialization is the lack of a bit of original passion and blood, which makes some music fans feel disappointed;
In 2023, the only comprehensive N generation that exceeds expectations is "Flowers and Youth: Silk Road Season", which will be launched in Q4. There is no intrigue and horse-catching conflict like in previous seasons, and this season's flower group is all traveling in Peace &Love. Four of the five sisters are from the Northeast, and they have their own comedian attributes, and everyone is just funny when they don't make trouble. "Electronic Music Dora" Qin Lan has countless fans with her super empathy and high emotional intelligence. The social collision that is true and can resonate with the audience has made the show's Douban score as high as 8.1, becoming the highest in the IP series.
In the drama track, the formula "traffic + ancient puppets" that the platform has always used to incubate popular projects has frequently "failed" this year: "Jade Bone Yao", which tells the story of "master-apprentice love", "An Le Biography", which has been criticized for its special effects and plot, and "Cloud Feather", whose broadcast effect is not up to expectations, are far from "explosive models".
In 2023, various platforms will also launch IP series, but compared with the previous work of "double harvest of popularity and word-of-mouth", the influence of the sequel will be significantly weakened. Mango TV's "Da Song Boys" became a dazzling dark horse in 2019, and the second season is basically the same as the first season in terms of word-of-mouth, with a Douban score of 7.8, but the number of ratings is only more than 60,000, about a quarter of the number of ratings of the previous work. As a sequel, the "new acquisition rate" of "Da Song Boys' Chronicles 2" is obviously not high, and the audience is basically concentrated on the fans of the first season.
In addition, although Tencent Video's "Love Only" and "Hometown, Don't Come to Harm" are not sequels, they are also the IP series of "Thirty Only" and "I'm Good in Another Country" respectively. However, the relatively independent story content does not let the work enjoy the IP halo, although the reputation of the two dramas is stable, and the Douban score is more than 8 points, but they lack the popularity and influence to break the circle.
In 2023, based on the cooperation foundation and creative experience of previous years, the platform will also try to "concoct" popular dramas with production companies. For example, last year, the stellar gravity of the popular ancient puppet "Canglan Jue" was created in the summer file, and this year it once again produced "Seven O'clock Auspicious" with iQiyi; Facts have once again proved that the experience of "explosive styles" cannot be replicated, and only sincerity and innovation can overcome the aesthetic fatigue of the audience.
How effective is the new trick?
Diverse themes and forms are integrated and innovated
More possibilities for the content industry
Seeking innovation and change is a necessary condition for the content industry to maintain its vitality. In 2023, various platforms will also try to innovate in many aspects to explore new possibilities in the content industry.
The integration of new elements and diverse themes has created a lot of new highlights for this year's content industry.
In 2023, whether it is a variety show or a drama series, the element of "farming" will appear, and the results will be good. iQIYI's labor documentary interactive reality show "Let's Farm the Land" allows 10 young people to form a farming team, with novel themes and live broadcast interaction showing a unique "cultivation system" effect, the effective broadcast of the program rushed to the fourth place in the annual list of online comprehensives, and it is the only two new variety shows that have entered the top ten;The drama "Tian Gengji", adapted from the farming text "Rebirth of the Little Landlord", has the highest popularity in iQiyi Station9371, second only to 5 dramas that break 10,000 and "Cloud Feather".
Sci-fi elements are also increasingly appearing in episodes. At the beginning of the year, "The Three-Body Problem", adapted from Liu Cixin's science fiction novel of the same name, was widely acclaimed, and in the second half of the year, there were also suspense dramas "Bionic World" and "Off the Rails" with the theme of exploring bionic people, and works with "soft sci-fi" elements were launched.
In the variety show track, reality shows focusing on amateurs jumped out of observation programs and opened up a new field of amateur competition. This year, Tencent Video and iQiyi respectively produced two programs focusing on amateur competition, "I Can 47" and "Unstoppable", although they are not popular, they have also received praise from a group of core audiences.
In addition, the addition of existing program types has also become a mode of variety show innovation. For example, this year, Youku and Mango TV have launched acting assessment variety shows, but compared with previous programs such as "Actors Please Be in Place" and "The Birth of an Actor", Youku's "We Hit It Off" highlights the partner setting, and on the premise that the principle of pairing runs through the whole season of the program, the content presentation also has a tendency to move closer to the love show, while Mango TV's "Who is coming" adds kung fu elements and takes action actors as the training goal. The two platforms each use new elements to package the program in addition to the core of the acting competition, which more or less enriches the highlights of the program, which is also a kind of "smart laziness".
In terms of subject matter, a new category will also appear in the variety show market in 2023 - group variety shows. is different from "Happy Restart" with 0713 as the core, and there are also differences with variety shows such as "Detective Academy" and "Let's Farm the Land" that cultivate core audiences from scratch, this new type of group variety show is essentially a derivative of serving the promotion of film and television projects.
The "Team Building Bar Qizhai" and "Da Song Detective Bureau" broadcast on Mango TV are group dramas filmed for the starring members of "Da Song Juvenile Chronicles 2", and "Fengshen Training Camp" directly edited the materials of the movie training into variety show content, inviting the main creator to review, and the meaning of "after-sales materials" is more obvious. iQIYI's self-made interactive form drama series "1 Million Promises" also invites the leading actors of the drama with a high number of reservations on the station to build a team, and two dramas have been filmed and launched when the series is broadcast. Rather than a show, such a group variety show is like a welfare material issued by the platform, providing "after-sales service" to the audience, helping the project to be promoted, and enhancing the two-way interaction between users and the platform.
In addition to content production, video platforms also have new actions in scheduling.
Previously, in addition to variety shows often launched at noon, episodes were usually scheduled from 6 to 8 o'clock in the evening, but in August this year, Tencent Video launched a comedy drama series schedule with a "bench unit", which arranged the comedy content in a unified manner with differentiated broadcast time and coherent broadcasting style, and dramas such as "The Legend of Magpie Knife Gate" and "The Happy Affair of Lan Boudoir" were all in this unit, which was launched at noon, making the "next dinner drama" more timely. Such an innovative idea may also make the platform more flexible in the scheduling of dramas.
Judging from the report card in 2023, the performance of the four major video platforms in 2023 is quite remarkable, iQiyi has created the most popular models, Tencent Video has won word of mouth by relying on boutique strategies, and Youku and Mango TV have made breakthroughs compared to previous years.
Overall, the specificity of the content industry makes it difficult to "replicate success in bulk", and platforms are well aware of this, and are pushing the boundaries of what industry creators are trying to diversify and produce more high-quality content to meet the growing aesthetic needs of audiences.
We believe and look forward to more sincere and good works in 2024.
Written by: Nandu reporter Yu Xiaoyu Zhu Wenyi
Drafting: American editor He Xin