Macro Benefits from Microdramas
Ways of skinning—same cat, or is it an entirely different animal?
Mobile first.
Snack-able content.
Instant satisfaction.
Social media spread.
The above lists some basic props in today’s new generation content consumption behaviour. Completely aligned with such pillars, it is no wonder microdramas have become a billion-dollar industry in record time.
“Micro dramas have already been a worldwide phenomenon, achieving US$2.5 billion in revenue in the international market, and accelerating at the speed of 12—15% CAGR from 2025 to 2030, based on our industry forecast,” stated Cassandra Yang, CEO of RisingJoy, a microdrama-focused licenser who has brought to market more than 200 Chinese, English and Korean titles from Chinese and Korean studios.
The inexorable rise of microdramas begs the question if this could just be another trend or frivolous phase of youths today. For Cassandra, who noted that RisingJoy alone has built an established B2B content licensing network with more than 20 regions/countries globally in 6 months—a number that will probably double in terms of partnerships by the end of 2025—this is not a phase.
“It is reshaping the media landscape,” Cassandra testified. “We have witnessed a lot of our partners growing their revenue rapidly; performing incredibly well in their new user acquisition and retention rate.”
Plot twist?
These first movers who are raking in the millions are new players, such as app builders, instead of media giants.
According to Cassandra, microdramas are more D2C content products on mobile. Thus, the major business models are IAP (In-App Purchase) and IAA (In-App Advertising), where consumers pay directly or buy "coins" to unlock episode-by-episode, which lie behind a paywall.
This new model that requires payment solutions and tech support, have welcomed new profiles into the ecosystem, beyond what the current traditional TVOD or SVOD model has established.
“I believe that a lot of traditional VOD players now are trying their best to incorporate this technology on their existing app,” Cassandra revealed.
Cassandra Yang
CEO
RisingJoy
Worlds Collide
Another interesting trend, which requires a mature e-commerce system, involves experimenting with direct access to online shopping by scanning microdrama videos—something Bytedance has been pursuing.
“So, this is not just a phase,” stated Cassandra. “We have witnessed a lot of our partners growing their revenue rapidly, performing so well in their new user acquisition and retention rate,” Cassandra elaborated, observing as well that first movers are new players, such as app builders, instead of media giants.
Data-wise, the daily consumption time of microdramas in China has gotten close to the online long-form dramas in 2024, with industry watchers predicting the possibility of it surpassing the latter this year.
Thus, RisingJoy has gone all in, noting that while there is truth that microdramas are more like traffic products instead of content products, where the wish for rapid growth means massive churn-out of these mobile first, snackable content, very good titles with the company’s selection benchmark, with 100 million views in the mainland China, can prevail for more than one year.
To date, RisingJoy has brought out more than 200 Chinese, English and Korean titles from Chinese and Korean studios, building a solid B2B content licensing network with more than 20 regions/countries around the world, all in the short span of six months.
“We probably will double the number of our partners by the end of 2025,” Cassandra stated confidently. “It is very interesting to build connections with new players in Japan, Korea, SEA, India, Turkey, Russia, UAE, even Africa.”
In the end, Cassandra hopes to build up a healthy and sustainable microdrama ecosystem with the industry—more so a macro success for all.