On May 11, Hujing Digital Media & Entertainment Group, Alibaba’s culture and entertainment business, unveiled a new content slate with more than 200 projects across drama series, variety shows, “pan-entertainment,” film, and live entertainment. Judging from the slate structure, suspense content has expanded to 25 titles, accounting for 25% of its drama series slate, while more than ten IP projects from Jinjiang Literature City have been confirmed for film and TV adaptations, with a focus on female-oriented content.
A key signal is Hujing’s growing bet on serialized IP. This spring launch includes 17 IP sequels, including drama sequels Legend of Zang Hai 2, The Immortal Ascension 2, and a sequel tied to Unveil: Jadewind, as well as the suspense drama Regeneration 2. The Blood of Youth 2 and Blood River 2 have also been confirmed for return.
At a time when short-form content is gaining prominence, Hujing’s insistence on content serialization is a contrarian choice. The trade-off is a stickier user base. In 2025, daily usage time for the Youku app reached 60 minutes, a record high. Commercial value also increased: last year, Legend of Zang Hai topped Enlightent’s annual ranking of drama series by views and Youku’s drama series ranking by brand sponsorship count.
Serialized production faces multiple challenges in China’s film and TV industry, including team continuity and consistent content quality. The ability to advance several IP sequels at the same time is evidence of a platform’s execution capability. Of the six best reviewed drama series of 2025, Youku accounted for three, according to 36Kr.
To some extent, the highly engaged users brought in by IP serialization, together with long-tail commercial value across multiple scenarios, are becoming Hujing’s competitive defense.
In the near future, content may be defined less by length than by weight. Premium, sizable content that can build emotional connection and move across online and offline spaces is better positioned to meet viewers’ deeper needs, including empathy and reflection. This is something short-form content is unlikely to replace.
This matters as artificial intelligence accelerates content polarization and the volume of short-form content expands rapidly. Larger, more substantial alternatives are becoming scarcer, which may strengthen their commercial certainty.
With continuous narratives, developed characters, and complete worldviews, heavier content can build deeper emotional connections with users and provide brands with more stable marketing anchors. It is a strong vehicle for carrying and amplifying brand mindshare. This may help explain why Youku has continued to focus on premium content.
Unveil: Jadewind concluded in February this year, but discussion around the show continues, and not only around its male and female leads. In the series, Wang Ping’an, who drove Gong Lian to her death; the right chancellor, who massacred Prince Duan’s household; and the emperor, the hidden force behind the events, are still being singled out by viewers for “denunciation.”
Giving supporting characters and villains room for discussion is one trait of strong storytelling. Correspondingly, Unveil: Jadewind has ranked first among drama series since 2026 in both average number of ads per episode and average ad duration per episode.
Beyond drama series, animation content with a large young audience is becoming a new focus area for major platforms.
According to an animation marketing guide for 2026, released alongside Youku’s new projects, animation fans follow series for an average of 6.7 years, and yearlong serialized animation operations can cultivate a stable habit of following updates. This content stickiness, formed through long-running narratives, can translate into direct commercial returns. The same guide indicates that 57% of advertisers plan to increase their animation marketing budgets in 2026, while 92% agree that animation marketing can help brands break out beyond niche audiences and reach broader groups.
The general manager of Hujing’s commercialization platform said:
“Animation has long broken out of niche circles, but most brands still feel unfamiliar with it. They know young people are watching, but they do not know how to invest or evaluate results. The mission of the guide is to build a methodological framework for this segment.”
At present, Youku animation titles such as The Demon Hunter and Beyond Time’s Gaze have formed stable year-round serialization and delivered strong results. Reservations on Youku for the third season of The Demon Hunter reportedly exceeded nine million before launch, leading by a wide margin.
The head of pan-entertainment commercialization at Youku’s commercialization center told 36Kr that animation, especially Chinese animation, is rising rapidly. The stability of its user base and content supply has made animation a new growth segment for marketing and a long-term channel for brands to maintain communication with young people.
How serialized IP amplifies commercial value
The immersive qualities and lifecycle of content can be extended through serialization, which can also increase commercial value for advertising brands.
Serialization, of course, can be difficult. IP serialization is not simply filming sequels. It requires involvement in IP development from the script stage to maintain production-team continuity, content quality, and worldview consistency.
Achieving this requires platforms to have rich IP reserves and the ability to operate IP over the long term. That means securing talent and production resources, operating user assets and communities, and enabling sustainable commercialization.
Youku’s explorations in this area have already produced phased results. Across five major tracks, including suspense crime, hot-blooded adventure, and social issues, Youku has continued to advance its serialization strategy. IPs such as The Blood of Youth, The Queen of News, and Riverside Code at Qingming Festival have formed stable serialized output while also delivering commercial value.
When The Queen of News aired in 2023, its fast-paced workplace narrative, multidimensional female ensemble, and realistic treatment of industry issues quickly made it a breakout hit. It achieved a 7.9 score on Douban and helped restore audience confidence in workplace-themed Hong Kong dramas.
Its popularity also signaled commercial potential to brands. Several partner brands expressed interest in collaborating on a sequel during the broadcast of The Queen of News. By the time The Queen of News 2 aired in 2025, the series had reportedly secured partnerships with more than 30 brands.
The sequel built on the first season’s appeal by expanding the workplace setting beyond power struggles inside a television station. Its story moved into a three-way contest among traditional media, online media, and a government information department. Real-world issues, including AI-driven content piracy and labor disputes, gave the series more topical weight, while its Douban score pointed to continued audience recognition.
The series’ independent, career-focused female characters also resonated with viewers, making it a useful vehicle for brands seeking to reach high-net-worth female consumers. It attracted partnerships with brands including Feihe and Nivea.
Last year, the collaboration between Ant Group’s AQ and The Vendetta of An won one of the overall grand prizes during the “Cool Awards” segment of Hujing’s latest launch. After The Vendetta of An aired, it ranked first on the platform in total number of ads and total ad duration for drama series in 2025. As the series’ title sponsor, AQ was promoted through a series of placements involving one of the show’s main characters.
The serialization of top-tier content from this slate, including Legend of Zang Hai 2, Regeneration 2, and Blood River 2, combined with Youku’s mature marketing capabilities, may further multiply marketing effects and help clarify the IP route.
“Serialization means this content world will continue growing, and brands do not have to start from zero every time,” the general manager of Hujing’s commercialization platform said. “The latest slate alone contains nine second-generation series across drama series. Among them, Legend of Zang Hai 2 and Blood River 2 quickly topped Weibo’s trending list as soon as they were launched, rapidly attracting massive attention and discussion. It can be seen that the commercial value of serialization continues to expand.”
Threading online and offline channels together
At Hujing, IP capabilities may also be amplified by the group’s marketing capabilities, including its “all-scenario” ecosystem.
In the content segment, fellow Alibaba subsidiary Damai Entertainment has continued to deepen its presence in real-world entertainment segments, including concerts, music festivals, stand-up comedy, comedy, and exhibitions. Traditional longform video marketing often stops at online exposure, while Hujing extends content IP value offline.
In 2025, box office revenue from commercial live performances in China exceeded RMB 60 billion (USD 8.8 billion) for the first time, while attendance reached 194 million, according to the China Association of Performing Arts. Riding this trend, Hujing built a film and live entertainment position through Taopiaopiao and Damai, creating a chain from online drama watching to offline experiences. Around a single IP, brands can obtain compound marketing resources including theater title sponsorship, character derivatives, and offline film and live entertainment tie-ins, rather than relying on one-off placements.
Take the Xiami music and arts festival as an example. Held for four years so far, the festival has worked with 27 partner brands, while sponsorship revenue has grown several dozenfold. It has become a scenario in which brands, content, and music fans can all benefit. On-site, several brands completed content co-creation with the music festival, connecting with music scenarios, lifestyles, and the emotions of music fans.
According to Hujing, this year’s Xiami festival will expand into a matrix that includes a large festival and midsize outdoor “outing,” complemented by a smaller indoor component.
Damai’s offline exploration also follows an IP-driven approach. It has previously promoted the offline implementation of classic IPs such as Yao-Chinese Folktales, which became an art exhibition.
The general manager of Hujing’s commercialization platform said:
“All-scenario does not mean filling every channel. It means allowing the same emotional thread for a brand to run through the user’s complete journey from reach to conversion.”
To this end, Hujing’s approach has three layers of integration:
- Online-offline scenario integration: Youku’s premium content provides immersion, Damai’s offline performances provide implementation, and brands establish a presence across more spaces in users’ lives.
- Cross-category IP integration: Drama series, variety shows, animation, and offline performances circulate around the same IP, with all touchpoints conveying a consistent brand narrative and ensuring continuity of experience.
- Data integration: Personal, household, and public screens are connected, moving audiences from content reach to brand experience and e-commerce conversion. Precise retargeting enables full-chain attribution, a capability that pure content platforms may find difficult to replicate.
This integration of online content and offline emotional engagement forms Hujing’s core barrier, setting it apart from other platforms and supporting long-term commercial monetization of its IP.
KrASIA features translated and adapted content that was originally published by 36Kr. This article was written by Xiao Xi for 36Kr.