China's micro-drama market doubled to more than 100 billion yuan (about 14.41 billion U.S. dollars) last year compared to 2024, said an official from the National Radio and Television Administration at a press conference in Beijing on Friday.
Micro-dramas are serialized video dramas with episodes lasting 1-3 minutes each, designed for mobile viewing. The booming entertainment format has exploded in China over the last couple of years, generating billions in revenue through pay-per-episode models and advertising.
Wang Xiaoliang, director of the Department of Network Audio-visual Program Management under the administration, said at the press conference that 33,000 micro-dramas were launched in 2025, attracting nearly 700 million domestic users.
To foster the booming sector's development, he said the administration will formulate measures and implement an action plan, with the ultimate goal of boosting service consumption.
According to Wang, the planned "Administrative Measures for the Development of Micro-dramas" aims to bolster fair market competition while safeguarding content safety, thereby stimulating innovation and creativity and creating a healthy, positive, and orderly environment for the industry.
He noted that the action plan is designed to empower the development of culture, tourism, sports, agriculture, and other sectors by integrating different industries to expand service consumption.
"We will promote the integration of technological and industrial innovations, and utilize new technologies such as artificial intelligence to create new service consumption scenarios, in order to unleash the potential of service consumption. We will encourage service exports, including helping excellent micro-dramas to go overseas and tap into international markets," said Wang.
China's micro-drama market doubles in 2025, reaching nearly 700 million viewers
The 140th edition of the China Import and Export Fair, also known as the Canton Fair, entered its third day on Saturday, with a wave of AI-powered products making their debuts and injecting fresh momentum into China's export growth.
The event opened to visitors in Guangzhou, capital of south China's Guangdong Province on Thursday, and will be held in three phases through Nov 4.
The latest edition of the fair is showcasing 235,000 AI products, while more than 20,000 exhibitors have adopted different kinds of new technologies. Booths featuring the latest AI products have been drawing crowds, with visitors waiting in long queues to try out the exhibits.
"[The Canton Fair] really gets more popular every year. By around 9:30, people were already queuing in two lines. Some buyers did not want to wait to try the products, so they just bought them on the spot," said exhibitor Liang Linchao.
"The enthusiasm of Canton Fair [buyers] has exceeded my expectations. About one-third of customers want to take one home immediately after the fair ends. That gives us great confidence to explore and expand our overseas markets," said another exhibitor Cui Wei.
Beyond creating business opportunities, products showcased at the Canton Fair can also make a difference in the lives of people in need.
Max Young, who was visiting the Canton Fair for the third time, brought his mother along this time. The mother and son had expected to simply soak up the bustling atmosphere, but an exoskeleton robotic device they came across brought them an unexpected surprise.
His mother, who has had difficulty walking since suffering a stroke, was able to stand up and walk with the help of the device.
"It just keeps my legs going. It's good. Yes, it's good," said his mother, Suzanne Elliott, almost bursting into tears.
"Last year she had a stroke, so the left-hand side of her body is a little bit weaker. About one year ago she couldn't walk or stand up at all. We tried this one today. It seems very good. I think it would help her to get better," said Young.
At the 140th Canton Fair, many exhibitors are accelerating the rollout of research achievements into real application scenarios, turning technological strengths into market advantages and making the fair a major showcase for technological innovation.
"Extremely impressive. Just everything about the efficiency and just how vast and large everything is. We saw a lot of production now is gone to robotics production, AI technology, less humans, really advanced and precise, a lot of precision manufacturing. I think innovation is starting here now. I think now the initiation is here, the R and D is here, and the creativity is coming from China. Very, very impressed," said Canadian buyer Yehuda Klein.
Serving as a barometer and wind vane of China's foreign trade, this year's fair, marking its 70th anniversary, features innovation, intelligence, greater specialization and higher quality.
The Canton Fair is one of the world's few one-stop trade platforms offering a complete range of products with convenience and efficiency, while bringing together the latest products and technologies.
AI products take center stage at 140th Canton Fair, showcasing innovation, offering real-world benefits
AI products take center stage at 140th Canton Fair, showcasing innovation, offering real-world benefits
