Company Overview and Operational Context

iQIYI is one of China’s largest online video platforms and a central player in the country’s digital entertainment economy. The platform hosts a broad catalogue of long-form video content, including TV dramas, films, animation, documentaries and variety shows, and attracts more than 520 million monthly active users. This scale positions iQIYI as a primary channel for advertisers seeking nationwide reach through video-based user engagement.

Audience composition is a defining characteristic of the platform. Approximately 68% of iQIYI users are female, with the strongest concentration among viewers aged 19–24, a demographic that is highly responsive to video advertising in categories such as beauty, fashion, consumer technology and lifestyle products. This demographic structure, combined with long average viewing sessions, creates favorable conditions for sustained advertising exposure.

iQIYI’s subscription model further strengthens its advertising environment. With more than 100 million paid subscribers, the platform balances ad-supported reach with premium viewing behavior. Paid users typically consume uninterrupted content, while free users generate high volumes of ad impressions within structured viewing sessions. This dual model allows advertisers to design campaigns that balance scale, frequency and contextual relevance.

Because iQIYI content consumption is intentional rather than incidental, advertising is delivered in moments of heightened attention. Long watch times, emotional engagement with serialized content and habitual mobile usage during commuting and leisure hours make the platform particularly effective for video-led communication.

Advertising Services Offered Through iQIYI

iQIYI advertising formats are structured around the viewer journey, placing ads at the entry point, pre-content phase and discovery stage. Each format is designed to leverage predictable user behavior patterns documented by OctoPlus Media.

Open Screen Ads appear immediately when users launch the iQIYI app. As users typically open the app with the explicit intent to watch long-form video, these placements deliver instant, full-screen visibility. Open screen ads support static and dynamic creatives, geographic targeting and redirection to in-app landing pages. They are sold primarily on a CPD (cost-per-day) basis, ensuring guaranteed exposure over a defined period. This format is commonly used for high-impact campaigns such as movie releases, major brand announcements and large-scale ecommerce promotions.

Pre-Roll Video Ads are delivered before selected content begins and are non-skippable. Because viewers are waiting for their chosen program to start, these ads achieve full exposure and high completion rates. Targeting options include demographics, behavioral segments and content genre alignment, allowing advertisers to reach audiences already engaged with specific types of programming such as dramas, animation or variety shows.

Feed Ads appear within content discovery streams as users browse recommended videos and trending sections. Designed to visually resemble editorial content tiles, feed ads reduce disruption and encourage interaction. They support CPM, CPC and CPV pricing models and allow engagement actions such as likes and comments, enabling advertisers to measure user response beyond impressions.

Native Video and Graphic Ads are embedded within themed content hubs such as “TV Series,” “Movies,” “Animation” and recommendation sections. Because users actively browse these categories, advertising benefits from contextual alignment. Lifestyle and beauty brands frequently leverage variety show environments, while automotive and premium goods advertisers favor drama channels where audiences tend to have higher purchasing power.

Channel Page Placements appear within specific content pages and episode listings. These placements position branded creatives alongside curated content, reinforcing message relevance and emotional resonance. They are often used to support sustained campaign visibility during popular series runs.

Across all formats, iQIYI offers advanced targeting capabilities, including geographic segmentation, demographic filtering, interest clusters and behavioral attributes derived from viewing history and device usage. This enables advertisers to refine delivery while maintaining large-scale reach.

Effectiveness and Practical Usefulness of iQIYI Advertising

iQIYI’s advertising effectiveness is closely tied to the platform’s long-form consumption model. Unlike short-video platforms characterized by rapid scrolling, iQIYI users engage in extended viewing sessions that commonly last 20 minutes or more, significantly increasing ad visibility and reducing avoidance.

Open screen ads benefit from repeated daily exposure, as users frequently return to the app to continue episodic content. This results in consistent brand visibility across a concentrated audience base.

Pre-roll video ads deliver predictable completion due to their non-skippable format. Positioned immediately before emotionally engaging content, these ads benefit from heightened viewer attention, supporting stronger recall and message retention.

Feed and native ads perform well due to their integrated design. By aligning with natural browsing behavior, these placements generate stronger interaction and higher click-through rates compared to interruptive formats.

Channel-based placements further enhance relevance by matching advertising with genre-specific audiences. Drama environments attract older, lifestyle-oriented users, while animation and variety shows skew younger and trend-driven, allowing precise demographic alignment.

Together, these formats support multi-stage video strategies that align exposure, engagement and contextual relevance across the viewing journey.

Key Advantages for Advertisers Using iQIYI Advertising

iQIYI combines scale and engagement depth, offering advertisers access to hundreds of millions of users within a premium long-form video environment. This combination enhances memorability and message absorption compared to short-form or display-based platforms.

The platform’s video-first architecture enables cinematic storytelling, making it well-suited for campaigns requiring emotional impact and product demonstration. Multi-format flexibility allows advertisers to combine mass reach with targeted exposure.

iQIYI’s data-driven targeting supports efficient segmentation based on real viewing behavior, improving alignment between creative and audience interests. This reduces wasted impressions and enhances campaign efficiency.

The native integration of ads within content environments reduces user fatigue. Advertising appears where users expect video content, preserving viewing continuity and improving acceptance.

Conclusions

iQIYI Advertising represents one of China’s most mature and effective video advertising ecosystems. Its combination of open screen takeovers, guaranteed pre-roll exposure, feed-based discovery ads and contextually aligned placements enables advertisers to design cohesive, video-led strategies across the user journey.

With 520+ million monthly active users, strong engagement patterns and advanced targeting capabilities, iQIYI offers both the scale required for nationwide campaigns and the precision needed for segmented marketing. For advertisers operating in China’s competitive video landscape, iQIYI provides a reliable platform for achieving measurable engagement and sustained campaign effectiveness.

Read our other articles at blog.scroogefrog.com