Giving creative touch to lockdown life

QuVideo apps exploit new avenues during the pandemic to consolidate overseas biz

Chinese short video companies have found an ingenious way of offering a sense of belonging and moral encouragement to users in COVID-19-stricken countries: they are exporting their video-editing software.

For instance, Hangzhou-based internet-based company QuVideo Co Ltd, parent of video-editing app VivaVideo, provided its mobile video creation tools and services so that those stuck indoors due to lockdowns could do some creative work. This move led to a rapid rise in the number of its newly registered users.

Han Sheng, founder and chief executive officer of QuVideo, said when the epidemic broke out in China, people spent most of their time indoors. The company's mobile app VivaVideo, which allows users to edit short videos and post online, became one of people's favorite social activities.

In March, as the pandemic spread overseas, there was a rapid surge in new overseas users as well, he said.

Although absolute numbers were not available, percentage-wise data from the company showed that newly registered overseas users of VivaVideo surged by 47 percent from March 15 to April 17.

Specifically, new users in Europe rose by 68 percent, and those in the United States increased by nearly 50 percent. Besides, QuVideo's other products, such as the professional video-editing software VivaCut, also achieved significant growth.

To target overseas users, the company adjusted its strategy to meet specific demands of users in each local market. For instance, in the pandemic-stricken markets such as the US, Europe, Brazil and Indonesia, the company's local team launched a video-editing template called #I will survive#, reminding the public to wash hands properly and frequently.