Mobile Soap Opera Content

A Chinese company called RealShort is creating bite-sized romantic soap opera content that's achieving massive success. They adapt Chinese romance content for Western audiences through short-form video episodes, monetizing through ads and in-app purchases.

Key Points:

• Content Format:

  • 50 episodes per show
  • 90-120 seconds per episode
  • Vertical video format
  • Cheesy, D-grade soap opera style content
  • Focus on affairs, scandals, marital intrigue

• Business Performance:

  • 11 million downloads since August 2022
  • $22 million in revenue in first year
  • Currently doing ~$10 million/month
  • Strong viewer engagement and viral sharing

• Monetization:

  • Free to watch with ads
  • Users can pay coins to unlock episodes faster
  • Content also distributed on YouTube, getting millions of views

• Content Strategy:

  • Adapting Chinese romance content for Western audiences
  • Focus on addictive, dramatic storylines
  • Low production quality but highly engaging plots
  • Titles like "Son-in-law's Revenge" and "Never Divorce a Secret Billionaire Heiress"

• Distribution:

  • Primary app platform
  • Also leveraging YouTube, Facebook Reels
  • Strong organic sharing and word-of-mouth growth
  • Content banned in China but thriving in US market