Cloud Video Enters the Era of Customization
——Former NetEase tech team ventures into cloud video service platform
Shenzhen Business Daily reporter Chang Shuyi
In the rapidly evolving landscape of new media, various types of media content are emerging, and video has become a standard feature for most media websites. While many are still wondering, "What does cloud video service include?" or "What is video hosting?", a dark horse in the domestic video service industry—Polyv—has caught the attention of many industry insiders. Building on a platform with traditional features, its cloud video service platform has tapped into the specific needs of the e-commerce and education sectors. Recently, the reporter interviewed Xie Xiaofang, one of the founders of Polyv and currently the executive director of Yifang Information Technology Co., Ltd., to hear his story about how video services—cloud video—started and became a powerful tool for network applications.The original intention was to lower the barrier to video applications
After graduating from university, Xie Xiaofang joined a foreign company in 2000, working on video transmission-related technologies. At the end of 2003, he joined NetEase, one of the four major internet portals in China, becoming the technical head of NetEase's video center. After leaving NetEase, Xie Xiaofang continued to work in the domestic online video field, serving as the general manager of the video division at ChinaCache. His immersion in the industry not only accumulated experience but also secured crucial industry resources.
With years of experience in the video industry, Xie Xiaofang understood that video applications inherently have high technical and resource barriers. These barriers deterred companies and entrepreneurs who needed internet video, severely hindering the development of the online video industry. To solve these challenges, at the end of 2012, Xie Xiaofang and Huang Hailiang, former deputy director of NetEase's technology center, discussed whether they could create a professional cloud platform to provide customizable video services for enterprises, institutions, and entrepreneurs. They quickly assembled a team of technical experts from NetEase and Baidu, referenced the BrightCove model abroad, used mature technologies to create a video and video hosting platform, and co-founded Polyv. Currently, the Polyv cloud video platform, built on a foundation of traditional features, has decisively entered the e-commerce and education sectors, becoming a shining dark horse in the vertical cloud computing field.
Cloud video services deliver value to users
Initially, since everyone came from a technical background, marketing and sales became a challenge. The first deal was secured by Xie Xiaofang himself on QQ. "When communicating with the client, I was very nervous. I had two questions: first, where did they see us, and second, did they have a good experience using our product?" To truly open up the market, it was essential not only to master technology and resources but also to understand user psychology. "I often study user psychology—what are their real needs? And can we (the company) meet those needs?" Five months after launch, the company began to turn a profit.
Unlike video websites such as Youku and YY, Polyv's characteristic is that it does not showcase itself but provides technical support behind the scenes for users. When asked about the biggest difference, Xie Xiaofang believes that ordinary video websites operate on a B2C model, while Polyv operates on a B2B model. "We solve video problems for enterprises and institutions." In addition to building video technology processing backends for enterprises, many personal video services have also gained popularity with the development of mobile terminals. For example, online videos themselves can generate QR codes, making them applicable in various ways. A flower shop owner offered a video QR code blessing service: buyers only need to provide a video QR code printed on the bouquet card, and the recipient can scan the QR code with their phone to watch the blessing video.
"Letting users gain value and letting their videos realize greater value is the driving force behind our progress." Thanks to solid technology and various practical features, such as video slicing, Polyv quickly entered the top three in the video service industry. By the end of this year, Polyv had nearly 10,000 enterprise users, with an average of over 3,000 user videos uploaded daily. The largest online education institution in China, Xingshuai Education, chose Polyv's cloud video service. In November 2014, Polyv launched a user testimonial campaign, collecting a large amount of customer feedback on the product, representing industry recognition and trust.
Products conceived out of thin air are not feasible
The entrepreneurial journey has not been smooth sailing. Xie Xiaofang admitted that they have taken detours. He once imagined a product with market demand, which received positive user feedback during testing, but it completely failed after being launched. This exploration gave Xie Xiaofang deeper insights into entrepreneurship: developing a new product that fails to deliver expected results only indicates that, first, there is no market demand for the product, and second, if the product has a market but sells poorly, it means the product itself is flawed.
Who says entrepreneurship always leads to success? Failure is common. Through this attempt, Xie Xiaofang believes that his company and products are only suitable for an automated "light operations" technology platform. "Providing cloud platform services for online video should closely follow the development of user needs." According to Xie Xiaofang and his team's analysis, the future trend of video development will mainly lean toward mobile video, micro-video, and interactive video content and interactive applications. "Video reflects more value output, and it is currently widely used in the education field with immediate results." With the development of interactive application technology, cloud video technology will be applied to more media, soon achieving universal coverage.
This article is selected from: Shenzhen Business Daily
