Love at First Stream: iQIYI Celebrates Valentine's Day with New Content and Streaming Preference Survey

BEIJING, Feb. 14, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- iQIYI, an innovative market-leading online entertainment service in China, celebrates Valentine's Day this year with new content releases. iQIYI will be releasing a slate of new content for its members to enjoy together with their significant others on Valentine's Day. New content to be released around the day include a new romance period drama Oh My Lord to be exclusively debut on iQIYI's global platforms, and the online premiere of the movie Embrace Again on iQIYI.

Leading up to Valentine's Day, iQIYI also released the findings from its romance-focused streaming preference survey, revealing behavioral trends of individuals using streaming services across four markets in China and Southeast Asia including Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan, and Thailand.

Viewing behaviors change significantly in today's age with diversified channels and contents, and people view streaming decisions as key and influential factors in their relationships. 71% of respondents in the survey agree that watching shows together on streaming platforms is a significant part of dating, and 65% indicated their dating life or relationship has been impacted by COVID. iQIYI also found that Chinese language content has become increasingly popular outside of China, with a whopping 81% of respondents across the four markets saying they enjoy spending quality time with their partners by streaming shows together with the top choice being Chinese-language films and shows.

For Valentine's Day, iQIYI will by providing its members in the Chinese mainland with special romance-themed benefits, including romance-themed prize lotteries, customized memberships cards, and special red packets.

The Four Stages of Romance and Streaming

Through the survey, iQIYI was able to identify an interesting four stages of streaming behaviors mirroring people's relationship status.

• Stream and Match: 63% respondents would opt in for streaming a show/film together on their first date. 60% went for romance as a safe bet while 28% leaned towards a riskier choice and chose thriller shows with the potential match.
• Is Your Suitor Suitable: Moving onto the honeymoon phase, 84% of those surveyed believed that watching a show on a date helps forge a deeper connection. 85% said that they would try watching new genres if their date wants to, with 40% finding themselves watching romance genres just because their partners recommended it. Echoing this, 4 in 5 respondents indicated that they would be willing to compromise their own show preferences and schedules for the ones they love. What is sweeter is that nearly 50% of the respondents will also bookmark movies or shows they think their partner would like to binge on next.
• The Next Episode: As a sign of devotion to the other half, what is sweeter than sharing an account? Based on the survey, 79% of those surveyed believe that sharing one streaming account with their date is a step towards commitment. Meanwhile, 73% would like to receive a streaming account or VIP membership as a gift from their loved ones.
• Unsubscribe Your Relationship: As the relationship blossoms and deeper connections are forged, annoying habits start to surface and this can either make or break a relationship. About 49% respondents hate it when their other half drops spoilers on them while 39% of respondents find it annoying when their other half fast forwards the episodes while watching together.

Romance tops all the choices by genre

65% of respondents choose Romance as one of their go-to genre, followed by Comedy (54%) and Action/Adventure (53%), while viewing with their significant others. 60% tend to watch Romance shows when looking for romantic inspirations and 75% would draw real life love advice from the shows.

Comedy, on the other hand, is the top choice to watch after a breakup. When streaming alone, however, Mystery/Suspense/Thriller becomes equally popular, and 30% say they would watch alone without letting their partners know.

About the Survey

Approximately 100 streaming users in each market between the ages of 18 and 55 were polled for their streaming preferences while consuming media from OTT (over-the-top) platforms with their significant others. 

CONTACT: iQIYI Press, [email protected]

SOURCE iQIYI