Micro-Dramas: A $7bn Industry in China
Micro-dramas, 90-minute films broken down into one-minute episodes, have taken China by storm. Available online, the first few episodes are free, while the rest can be accessed through an app for a fee of up to $30 per drama.
A growing number of these micro-dramas are AI-generated videos. According to Adrienne Lahens, former TikTok executive and current head of Infinite Studios,
"The micro-drama market in China pulls in $7bn annually. It’s already bigger than their domestic box office,"citing the example of Nine-Tail Fox Demon Falls For Me,
"A fully AI-generated series that gained over 200 million views in just a month."
Author's summary: Micro-dramas are a huge industry in China.