China’s largest search engine Baidu had developed a fourth short video app and is waiting for distribution approval from the Apple’s App Store, 36Kr reported on Tuesday, citing people close to the matter.
The app, called Fanle, targets users aged between 18-and-24-year-old, and will offer original dramas conceived specifically for the app, which could be unfolded in three to five short-videos, each one lasting between 30 seconds and 5 minutes.
No other details about the app are know, and Baidu declined to comment on 36Kr‘s request for comment.
The new app will presumably serve as a new attempt for the company to catch up with ByteDance’s Douyin and Tencent-backed Kuaishou, the current kings in the Chinese short-video sector.
Baidu has rolled out three short video apps in total, named Haokan Video, Nani Video, and Quanmin Video, but none of them has managed to compete with Duoyin and Kuaishou in terms of popularity.
Douyin reported 320 million daily active users (DAUs) by July, while Kuaishou, which has gathered 200 million DAUs by May, is seeking to hit 300 DAUs before the 2020 Chinese New Year, which starts in late January.
36Kr is KrASIA’s parent company