“I wish Amemv can keep it this way and create a pure land for the large groups of internet users. Never blindly expand user base to the countryside or grassroots as many other platforms,” a user commented under Amemv’s App Store page.

　　In fact, Amemv did adopt an entirely different set of product management ideas. For example, Amemv’s respondent revealed to TMTPost that they preferred to distribute traffic to less-known dance and performance talents than online celebrities. For them, this group of minor celebrities is highly active in uploading new short videos and each of them can attract a small group of users. Therefore, Amemv no longer needs to worry that their DAUs will plummet after online celebrities leave their platform.

　　Indeed, this is a lesson Amemv has learned from the rapid rise and fall of Xiaokaxiu. As one of the first group of lip synchronization platforms, Xiaokaxiu attracted over 1,500 stars and celebrities in its heyday around 2015 and once topped the Mainland China’s App Store. However, after celebrities’ novelty subsided, Xiaokaxiu gradually faded out of public attention.

　　A race against time

　　At the primary stage of short video competition, new rivals constitute a vital variable.

　　This March, TMTPost happened to notice Musical.ly, a Chinese short video platform popular overseas, and revealed that Muscal.ly was said to enter the short video battle soon back in China.

　　With over 200 million overseas users, Musical.ly is also a short video platform featuring elements such as music and social networks.

　　However, many Zhihu’s overseas users found that Musical.ly and Amemv had a lot in common. “Indeed, Amemv is copying everything from us, from product logic to operation strategies,” Yang Luyu, co-founder of Musical.ly, told TMTPost.

　　Nevertheless, Musical.ly was a step slower in the Chinese short video market since its main focus used to be the global market. “Musical.ly’s delay in the Chinese market enables its rivals to strike first,” Yang said regretfully.

　　“In the next few months, we shall engage in vigorous competition with Amemv,” Yang added, though he didn’t reveal its specific plan in the Chinese market.

　　Screenshots of Amemv and Musical.ly

　　However, Amemv’s respondent revealed to TMTPost in a recent interview that its product logic actually came from a German APP called Dubsmash.

　　“Both Chinese and American young people love the idea of expressing themselves through short music videos. Needs beget products,” the respondent explained. As long as users love the APP, they didn’t care if their product was similar to others.

　　“The most important task is to solve the unsolved problems in previous short music video platforms and have young Chinese willingly accept and embrace our product,” the respondent added, “we better understand the needs of Chinese users, especially young Chinese.”

　　This is also why Amemv put much of its time and effort on developing filters and special effects. There’s often strong cultural barrier on UGC-based short video platforms, while Chinese people are more internalized and have all kinds of idol burden, the respondent explained.

　　Up till now, Amemv has released 10 special effect templates and maintained high user participation rate. TMTPost also found that Amemv had already changed the name of “special effect” button into “Props”. It is likely that Amemv will soon release paid special effect templates and add a new source of its income.

　　Secret to popularity

　　However, there’s nothing new about filters and special effect templates for Chinese users.

　　After all, Meitu has already grabbed a large number of female users with its various filters and special effects and once topped the free APP list in Mainland China’s App Store for 24 consecutive days. Today, filters and special effects have also become standard functions on short video platforms.

　　However, Amemv aims to be far more than a tool. “The entire company (TouTiao) has long been thinking about how to enter the UGC short video race,” Amemv’s respondent told TMTPost.

　　To a degree, Amemv has adopted the same development path as Instagram, from a cool tool featuring filters and special effect templates to a content community.

　　In fact, Instagram’s rise had much to do with filters. At the early stage, Instagram’s users mainly included high-end users and even professional photographers who had high demand for photo quality.

　　With high-quality filters and full support of major social network platforms, Instagram grabbed a number of loyal users. Although it was later acquired by Facebook with $1 billion, it didn’t prevent Instagram from being one of the most influential photo-based social network APP.

　　Similarly, Amemv attracted the public attention first through talents in the music and online celebrity circle and college students in dance and music societies.