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Thesis Live stream fever in China: Consume boredom

Introduction:

After watching a talk on “slow TV” by Thomas Hellum who designed the 7hours 14 minutes live documentary “Bergen-Oslo Train Real Time”, I was impressed by the statement “Boring is addictive”. The concept of “slow TV” with no storyline or drama, just let the objects in the footage themselves tell the story is an interesting perspective to me. In a meanwhile, people like to watch live stream even though it is boring. For the audiences, sit down and enjoy the boring live stream is safe and comfortable. No matter what the content are, the live stream simply feed up audience’s mind and make them feel like they are experiencing. Also, the audiences in each live stream room are connected due to they are watching the same character. They talk about the characters as if they actually know them. Some characters developed their own sense of style that attract people and make numerous profits by hosting the live stream. In the time that no one can live without social media, It also reflects that people need to be accompanied due to boredom and loneliness is so hard to deal with.

Quote by Aldous Huxley: “City life is anonymous and, as it were, abstract. People are related to one another, not as total personalities, but as the embodiments of economic functions or, when they are not at work, as irresponsible seekers of entertainment. Subjected to this kind of life, individuals tend to feel lonely and insignificant. Their existence ceases to have any point or meaning.”

Chapter 1 What do audiences expect?

Some years ago if someone sit in front of the computer for over 10 hours each day it would probably be called as computer addiction, however in our time one can totally live in a digital world from awake to sleep, from work to entertainment. Addiction is defined as compulsive engagement with certain substances or activity, when people have already known the activity interfered their daily life they still cannot stop. In current situation Digital device has become necessary if we want to get touch with outside world. Studies show about 40% of our daily activities is out of habit, the average person spends 90 minutes a day on their cellphone. When an activity became common, the boundary between addiction, habit and norm is no longer clear anymore.

The book Hooked: How to build habit-forming products created a “hook model” that applies to most of the addictive apps and digital products, app designers tend to build the apps which make users check multiple times spontaneously. No matter which social network app or site, users usually check their new feeds on a break, scroll up until finding something that meets their interests and needs. By subscribing users can choose subjects to focus and the useful information makes the users continue hooking with the app. In a meanwhile that also means one totally agree with giving his personal preference to the online service.

In 2016 live stream apps have spread widely in competitive app market of China. Unlike traditional live stream sites, Chinese live stream app are free to use, anyone can be a host. It also exactly fit the “hook model”. In somewhere a host makes her life happen in front of smart phone, then her life has been transformed to codes and signals go through the receiver’s screen. Live stream create a more idealized life. In this case, boredom or loneliness as an internal trigger pushes users to crave company, and the live stream apps provide users a platform that one can interact with host. Then the user takes action: he enters a host’s room then probably get an easy reward ---- the greetings from the host that he happen to like. If he wanted more interaction he could buy virtual gifts for the host, due to the gifts are shown on screen he would get more attention from both the host and other audiences. The virtual gift exchanged by real money and there are numerous profit involved. Finally the most popular hosts would be pushed to the homepage and attract more audiences to come to this circulation.

The most viewed live stream categories are beauty and game. Live stream has been first widely commercialized by online porn industry. The chitchat and erotic performance attracted the first users in western countries. Then this live stream model came to China, due to Chinese law the pornographic live stream is illegal, it transformed to performance chat room where girls sing and dance. The majority users are also video game players. They are willing to spend time on virtual world. Video game live streamer even become a professional job, famous live streamers also have job-hopping opportunity just as any industry.

In order to keep the users, live stream apps need varies category of content. The online education, food as well as reality show have also shown there. However the major interaction between host and audience are still so much about sexual attraction. The combination of daily app and soft porn stimulate human physical pleasure and potentially can develop to a sort of addiction, which also kept lots of users.

Live stream create a better life. A lot of live stream IP addresses are located at small cities where the entertainment venue and activity are limited. They need to find a platform that easy to access and entertaining enough to kill boring time after work. The users behind probably never got the chance to talk with attractive woman in person and the host room are a way that they got to know them easily. Live stream are more interactive, real and on time compared to other forms such as text, picture and video. Audience can order the host to sing a particular song for him if he gave virtue gift. It fulfills a lonely user’s mindset.

People reshape a better self throughout online character, and live stream visualized a mainstream beauty standard due to the easy image retouch process embedded in the app. Big eyes, high nose and narrow jaw with performing skill create an illusion of an idealized beauty. The lower educated women who own lots of free time are more likely to be host. They are not afraid of showing femininity and make use of it. Be a host is simple job, as long as she reads the comments and shows gratification, there will be someone gave her gifts to find a sense of superiority above other male audiences. Just like in video game, rich players buy the best equipment to kill other players to feel superior. Online world is also projector of power.

The convenience of technology made people feel more comfortable on spending time with other people’s online avatar, they say anything they want and not necessary to take responsibility. According to the media equation theory, people treat their computers as real people. In live stream people treat their host as their friend or enemy. The hosts also form their community and visit each other’s chat room, buy gift for each other in order to get more audience flow.

Live stream provide a possibility of consuming boredom. Live stream is a tool that bond bored people together. Even though live stream world is not physical existing, people behind their online characters are real. We are easily mirror ourselves on those people as if we are not alone. We use technology to find the sense of companionship, but the companionship is single direction without the demands of friendship. The fact is the host and audiences are both being alone in front of their smart phone. Spend more time online is actually the way we hide from each other to keep a safe distance. In real life it is hard to build up trust and friendship, technology made us simplify the communication process, connection and disconnection can be easily done in smart phone. The anxiety when being alone is a common issue, people consume materials when they can not handle boredom.

Conclusion:

The imagination of live stream future

Referencing

Key text:

Aldous Huxley: Brave New World Revisited
Nir Eyal: Hooked: How to build habit-forming products
Sigmund Freud: The Future of an Illusion
Sherry Turkle: Alone Together
Reeves and Nass: The media equation