From personal broadcasting to institutional production, from life recording to talent expression, the live broadcast industry is undergoing a profound change.
On October 12, the 6th Douyin Live Broadcast Organization Conference opened at the Shenzhen International Convention and Exhibition Center. Representatives of industry authorities, live broadcast organizations from all over the country, and relevant personnel of the Douyin live broadcast platform gathered together to discuss "Starting new and walking together all the way". This conference is based on a consensus: when the live broadcast industry moves from individual and fragmented broadcasting to professional division of labor and institutionalized production, how to escort the industry to the new direction with standards has become a common issue faced by all parties.
Institutional live broadcasts represented by talent live broadcasts are becoming a very representative form in the live broadcast content ecology - professional academies have entered the game, live broadcast institutions have a high degree of division of labor, and content production is becoming increasingly sophisticated. People participating in the live broadcast industry are more professional and have a more systematic division of labor. It is also becoming a new cultural consumption phenomenon.
1. With the entry of professional forces, talent live streaming has become a new cultural consumption
A frequently used word in public opinion circles this year is "new popular literature and art." The so-called "new popular literature and art" refers to a new literary and art ecology that takes ordinary grassroots people as the subject of creation and the daily life of the public as the object of recording, in which everyone can express and be seen. This term was first implemented in the "15th Five-Year Plan" planning recommendations. In the two sessions of 2026, it was also written into the "15th Five-Year Plan" outline and the government work report. Online live broadcast is a very representative content form of "new popular literature and art".
The subjects of talent live broadcasts are expanding from ordinary individuals to professional troupes, professional actors, and professional production institutions. More and more professional talent experts, opera troupes, song and dance theaters, and talent agencies are entering the live broadcast room and moving the stage online. Live broadcast agencies with a high degree of division of labor participate in planning, production, and operation, turning a live broadcast from "one person facing the camera" to "a professional team working together to complete it." Live broadcast is no longer just a channel for people to see, but has become a new scene for professional literary and artistic forces to reach the public.
"New popular literature and art" also means that professional literature and art forces reach the public through new channels. On the live broadcast platform, actors from many professional troupes have found a "second stage". Professional arts such as opera, dance, and folk music have bid farewell to high-profile performances and come among the people. New forms such as group broadcasts, virtual anchors, and interactive live broadcasts have enriched the expression of popular literature and art and lowered the threshold for appreciation of traditional literature and art. A screen allows professional talents to efficiently connect with public needs, and also provides a new entrance for cultural consumption.
Internet philosopher Negroponte said that the essence of digitalization is empowerment. The webcast provided the most direct footnote to this sentence. In today's talent live broadcast, the participants are becoming more and more professional, and the content forms are becoming more and more diverse. From group broadcast stage to voice accompaniment, from games and entertainment to interest content, users of different ages and preferences can find suitable content in the live broadcast room. Live broadcast is changing from "mass entertainment" to "personalized cultural consumption."
2. Professional operation is the only way for live broadcast to mature.
The rich and diverse supply of live broadcast rooms is not formed spontaneously. Behind it is the industry transformation of live broadcast production towards institutionalization. In the development process of the live broadcast industry, a large number of live broadcast brokerage agencies, that is, MCN agencies, have continued to grow and become one of the most important producers of live broadcast content.
At this conference, a representative from the Central Cyberspace Administration of China mentioned that “MCN institutions are the organizers of the creation and production of live broadcast content and an important carrier for the production and dissemination of high-quality content.” Then, the ability to organize scattered anchors and precipitate individual inspiration into professional institutions is exactly the meaning of institutionalizing live broadcast production. And, this is already happening. As of 2025, the number of live broadcast brokerage agencies in my country has increased to 29,000, achieving significant expansion compared with previous years and becoming the backbone of content supply.
The growth of the institutional team not only increases the number, but also drives the iteration of the industry's production model and forces the industry to become standardized. The evolution of Douyin’s live broadcast ecology is a typical example: in the early days of the industry, individual anchors mainly worked alone, but now they have turned to multiple content forms. Relying on the two-wheel drive of “multiple models” and “high-quality content”, the operation system is moving towards professionalism and refinement.
And behind this is a whole set of efforts from supervision and platforms. Industry standards such as the "Operation Service Requirements for Online Performance Brokerage Agencies" have been introduced one after another, providing operational guidelines for the daily operations of live broadcast agencies; the platform is also actively filling in the shortcomings of the rules and refining the governance of the entire chain.
Taking the Douyin platform as an example, Douyin Live released the "Specifications for Contract Signing and Performance of Cooperation between Live Broadcast Organizations and Anchors", which restricts the association from the contract details and prohibits setting high liquidated damages or misleading members to withdraw from the membership, so as to protect the legitimate rights and interests of the anchors; it also released and upgraded the "Group Broadcasting Content Management Regulations" and "Group Broadcasting Organization Management Regulations" to rectify vulgar and illegal content and consolidate the responsibilities of the organization's main body. Douyin has also launched a policy of "anchors joining with peace of mind" to clarify the rights and obligations of both parties and prevent the association from infringing on the rights of anchors. This series of actions has a clear direction: to make institutional management more standardized, to ensure the rights and interests of anchors, and to allow more high-quality content to fully emerge.
Standards are not empty words, but should become visible actions. In the first half of 2025 alone, Douyin removed 54 guilds suspected of spreading pornographic vulgarity, fraud, providing brokerage services to minors and other violations, and punished 194 guilds for publicizing bad business practices. The "zero tolerance" stance shows that only by removing the bad apples can the industry's path become more stable.
3. To move towards the new, we need more platforms, institutions and supervision to co-govern.
Promoting the healthy development of the industry requires not only regulations, but also technological empowerment.
The “AI broker” function of the Douyin platform is an example. It provides operational assistance based on anchor operating data within the scope of authorization, serves more than 23,000 broker users every week, and supports quick data checking, attribution of operating fluctuations, and review report generation. In the past, guild operations relied solely on personal experience. Nowadays, trackable and repeatable business indicators provide organizations with a scientific basis for decision-making and give anchors greater room for commercial operations.
At the same time, the platform continues to invest resources to consolidate the foundation of the organization's comprehensive capabilities. Focusing on the growth needs of brokerage institutions, Douyin has built an integrated training and tool support system to promote the incubation of new anchors to get rid of dependence on individual experience and establish a standardized cultivation path. In terms of attracting new talents, the platform has opened up multiple channels such as short videos, live broadcast rooms, and off-site to discover cross-circle creators such as short drama actors and short video experts, and continues to expand the anchor supply pool.
Obviously, the value of these layouts goes far beyond the increase in the number of anchors, but also improves quality and efficiency from the supply side, enriches content forms, and creates a more diverse and healthy live broadcast industry ecosystem.
Various empowerments from the platform also show that the governance of the live broadcast industry should be a three-dimensional structure. This conference has the participation of functional departments, platforms, live broadcast organizations and anchors, etc. It just shows that the standardized development of the live broadcast industry is not the responsibility of one party, but requires the participation of many parties and collaborative governance.
This orientation is also reflected in the details of the conference. The conference honored 17 high-quality live broadcast room (anchor) representatives in the "Quality Network Anchor Cultivation Project", which was guided by the Network Comprehensive Management Bureau of the Central Cyberspace Administration and implemented by the China Federation of Network Social Organizations; another 24 group broadcast groups were awarded the honor of the "Quality Group Broadcast Plan (Second Batch)", which was guided by the Market Management Department of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and co-sponsored by the China Performance Industry Association and Douyin Live. It is becoming the consensus of the industry to set benchmarks with standards and lead the industry with benchmarks.
Today, whether in terms of content type or value impact, the value of live broadcast has long been far more than a form of entertainment. It is a cultural form, an agenda mechanism, a way of life that profoundly shapes society.
It needs to be emphasized that many professional actors engaged in traditional popular literature and art have regained their glory in Douyin live broadcast rooms and ushered in the second spring of their careers. However, this is an increase in addition to the existing stock, and it is also a supplement to offline performances. It is not to replace offline performances with online performances, but to open a new window for more people.
The theme of this conference - "Start new and walk together all the way" not only expresses the future prospects of the live broadcast industry, but also puts forward expectations for industry participants. The so-called "starting with the new" means that new technologies, new content, and new models will continue to emerge; the so-called "walking with each other along the way" means that live broadcast practitioners will regard content quality and compliance management as the foundation for their survival and stability. Live broadcasting is no longer a gust of wind, but a career that requires long-term hard work. Its vitality comes from those who are willing to take root here - the platform continues to invest in rules and capabilities, the organization deeply cultivates content and anchors incubate, and the anchors cherish every trust in front of the screen.
Stories of a screen changing destiny are still happening. Let more ordinary people's talents be seen and let live broadcasts move forward within regulations. This is not only the responsibility of this generation of live broadcast practitioners, but also a direction worthy of the entire industry's joint efforts. (Text/Jiang Han)
