Market revenue of online audio industry in China 2015-2022

By the end of 2021, China’s online audio business had a market revenue of around 22 billion yuan, which was one of the fastest-growing online audio markets in the world. The rapid growth of audio users, diversification of audio content and development of audio-related technologies are reshaping the Chinese audio market.

The booming audio streaming market

The fast popularization of mobile phones and mobile app usage in China has led to strong growth in the Chinese online audio streaming market. Online audio content in China is becoming more diverse in terms of potential user scenarios due to its fragmented nature and sense of companionship. In addition to video streaming and music, Chinese users are increasingly consuming audio content, with consumers listening to audiobooks and podcast programs more frequently.

Smart speakers and voice platforms

China’s robust telecom infrastructure and favorable regulation have benefitted its smart home market, which is quickly increasing in size. The share of Chinese people using smart speakers has seen rapid growth for the past few years and was expected to continue. Alongside the leading smart speaker labels like Alibaba, Baidu and Xiaomi, Ximalaya - the largest voice platform in China - also launched its own smart speaker “Xiaoya” in June 2017. Market observers have predicted that the audio content consumption, as well as the audio advertising market, will likely continue to expand with the increasing use of smart speakers.