iQIYI (, pronounced in English as ), formerly Qiyi (),
is a Chinese
subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming
Streaming media refers to multimedia delivered through a network for playback using a media player. Media is transferred in a ''stream'' of packets from a server to a client and is rendered in real-time; this contrasts with file downl ...
service owned by
Baidu. Headquartered in
Beijing
Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...
, iQIYI primarily produces and distributes films and television series.
iQIYI is currently one of the largest online video sites in the world, with nearly 6 billion hours spent on its service each month and over 500 million monthly
active users. On March 29, 2018, the company issued its
initial public offering
An initial public offering (IPO) or stock launch is a public offering in which shares of a company are sold to institutional investors and usually also to retail (individual) investors. An IPO is typically underwritten by one or more investm ...
in the
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
and raised $2.25 billion.
History
Qiyi was founded on January 6, 2010, by
Baidu with support from
Providence Equity Partners. It changed its name to iQIYI in November 2011.
On November 2, 2012, Baidu bought Providence's stake and took full ownership. On May 7, 2013, Baidu purchased the online video business of
PPStream Inc. for $370 million, which later became a
subsidiary
A subsidiary, subsidiary company, or daughter company is a company (law), company completely or partially owned or controlled by another company, called the parent company or holding company, which has legal and financial control over the subsidia ...
of iQIYI. On July 17, 2014, the site launched its film production division, iQIYI Motion Pictures, to expand existing cooperative projects with overseas peers, including purchasing releases and co-producing movies. On September 4, iQIYI collaborated with the
Venice Film Festival
The Venice Film Festival or Venice International Film Festival (, "International Exhibition of Cinematographic Art of the Venice Biennale") is an annual film festival held in Venice, Italy. It is the world's oldest film festival and one of the ...
, streaming the festival's movies online. In August 2014, iQIYI generated over 6.95 billion hours of viewing on its website. In October, iQIYI participated in the
Busan Film Festival, signing exclusive rights to nearly 100 South Korean titles. On November 19, 2014,
Xiaomi and
Shunwei Capital invested $300 million in iQIYI for about 10 percent to 15 percent of the site, while Baidu invested an additional $100 million and held about 80 percent.
In September 2014, iQIYI had established a
Chinese Communist Party
The Communist Party of China (CPC), also translated into English as Chinese Communist Party (CCP), is the founding and One-party state, sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Founded in 1921, the CCP emerged victorious in the ...
(CCP) committee inside the company, according to the official newspaper of the
Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party
The Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, officially the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, is the Central committee, highest organ when the National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party, national congress is not ...
, the ''
People's Daily
The ''People's Daily'' ( zh, s=人民日报, p=Rénmín Rìbào) is the official newspaper of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). It provides direct information on the policies and viewpoints of the CCP in multiple lan ...
''.
In November 2014, following the
National Radio and Television Administration's ban on all live-steaming of American TV shows, iQIYI's vice editor-in-chief defended the ban, stating that such content was against "socialist values."
On December 8, 2014, iQIYI's chief content officer, Ma Dong, said the portal planned to more than double original production in 2015, with at least 30 titles and 500 episodes on the slate compared to 13 in 2014. In 2015, iQIYI purchased the streaming rights to eight top entertainment shows in mainland China and several entertainment shows in Taiwan and South Korea, including ''
Running Man''. In March 2016, it was announced that it would launch in
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
. In June 2016, it was reported that it had 20 million subscribers.
In June 2014, iQIYI co-produced and distributed the drama ''Mysterious Summer'' with major Japanese broadcaster
Fuji TV
JOCX-DTV (channel 8), branded as or , is a Japanese television station that serves the Kantō region as the flagship (broadcasting), flagship station of the Fuji News Network (FNN) and the Fuji Network System (FNS). The station is owned-and- ...
. It was the first drama co-production between China and Japan and has been viewed more than 60 million times as of October 2014.
In 2017, the ''People Daily'' reported that two thirds of high-level staff in iQIYI's content department were CCP members.
On April 25, 2017,
Netflix
Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...
(which does not operate at all in China) announced that it had reached a licensing deal with iQIYI, under which some
Netflix original productions would be available on iQIYI day-and-date with their premieres worldwide.
In November 2018, iQIYI announced that it was raising new cash. The video business said that it will issue $500 million in convertible senior notes. Proceeds from the offering will go towards content and technology investments as well as capped call transactions to reduce potential dilution to shareholders upon conversion of the notes.
iQIYI has not been available in
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...
since October 15, 2020 due to a ban on partnerships with
mainland Chinese video streaming companies after iQIYI was found to be used by China's
Taiwan Affairs Office for conducting
united front activities on the island.
In December 2020, iQIYI opened a new office in Singapore at
Robinson Road to serve as the regional headquarters for
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Mainland Au ...
.
In 2020, iQIYI announced the production of ''
My Roommate Is a Gumiho'' as its first Korean Original Series. Due to positive reviews over their first self-produced series, which starred
Jang Ki-yong and
Lee Hye-ri (members of
Girl's Day), iQIYI expressed that they gained confidence in releasing more original Korean dramas produced under its name, like their announced upcoming productions of dramas like ''
Bad and Crazy'' (starring
Lee Dong-wook,
Han Ji-eun and
Wi Ha-joon) in 2021 and ''
Shooting Stars'' in 2022, with the hope of expanding their potential in the production of original Korean shows.
Also, iQIYI began to expand its horizons by producing Southeast Asian shows to stream as iQIYI originals for more viewership. In August 2021, iQIYI streamed a Singaporean drama series titled ''The Ferryman: Legends of Nanyang'', which will be its first Southeast Asian original series starring local actors from Singapore like
Lawrence Wong
Lawrence Wong Shyun Tsai. In this Chinese name, the Chinese surname, family name is Huang (surname), Wong. In accordance with custom, the Western-style name is Lawrence Wong and the Chinese-style name is Wong Shyun Tsai. (born 18 December 197 ...
and
Qi Yuwu and Taiwanese actress Kate Kinney. The drama is also a remake of the 2014 Chinese drama series, but in a Southeast Asian setting.
In October 2021, iQIYI and THEMA went into a partnership to launch their services on Netgem TV in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
and
Ireland
Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...
, with iQIYI hoping to distribute Asian content on European media to create a larger global audience.
During the
26th Busan International Film Festival, iQIYI partnered with Philippine broadcaster
ABS-CBN
ABS-CBN is a leading Philippine media and content company. It serves as the flagship media brand of ABS-CBN Corporation, a subsidiary of Lopez Holdings Corporation. Once the country's largest free-to-air television network, ABS-CBN has since ...
to produce ''Saying Goodbye'' and ''Hello, Heart'' as the first two Philippine original series, which will release later this year.
In May 2022, iQIYI Sports announced a streaming rights request for the Italian football competition Serie A. This marks the fifth acquisition since the expansion into the sports market after acquiring streaming rights to other sporting events such as UEFA, AFC, the English Premier League and Spanish La liga. The same month, iQIYI removed all movies of
Keanu Reeves after he appeared at a virtual event hosted by
Tibet House US due to its linkages with the
14th Dalai Lama
The 14th Dalai Lama (born 6 July 1935; full spiritual name: Jetsun Jamphel Ngawang Lobsang Yeshe Tenzin Gyatso, shortened as Tenzin Gyatso; ) is the incumbent Dalai Lama, the highest spiritual leader and head of Tibetan Buddhism. He served a ...
.
Reception
In 2019, Taiwan's
Institute for National Defense and Security Research reported that iQIYI is used by China's
Taiwan Affairs Office to further
united front efforts on the island.
In response, Taiwan banned the company.
In April 2020, activist investors, including
Muddy Waters Research, accused iQIYI of overstating its revenue and subscribers. Short-seller Wolfpack Research also accused the company of inflating revenue numbers. In August 2020, it was announced that the
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission subsequently launched an investigation into iQIYI. Later in early October 2020, iQIYI made a statement that an internal review into the allegations of fraud made by the American short seller Wolfpack Research, “did not uncover any evidence that would substantiate the allegations.” The internal review had been conducted by an independent audit committee, which included "a Big 4 accounting firm that is not the Company's auditor."
In June 2020, the Beijing Internet Court sided with a customer who sued the company for breaching the terms and conditions of the 'VIP' subscription. iQIYI had charged additional fees for pre-screens of dramas, although paying customers were promised access at no extra charge.
See also
*
List of iQIYI original programming
*
List of streaming media services
Notes
References
External links
*
{{VOD services
2019 establishments in Malaysia
Android (operating system) software
Astro Malaysia Holdings television channels
Baidu
Companies based in Beijing
Companies based in Shanghai
Internet properties established in 2010
Internet television channels
Internet television streaming services
IOS software
Mass media companies established in 2010
Subscription video on demand services
Television channels and stations established in 2019
Video hosting