A Qualitative Investigation into Definitions of Advertising in China: The Short Video Perspective

Abstract

With the rapid development of AI technology and 5G in China, the country’s advertising industry has changed significantly, perhaps even more than in other countries. This paper suggests that the magnitude of change means traditional definitions of advertising are no longer appropriate. Specifically, it considers such definitions of advertising with Chinese characteristics in the context of short video viewers by using grounded theory to code interviews with 14 Chinese netizens. In addition to providing a new definition of advertising for Chinese advertising, the paper forecasts advertising in the future for practitioners and academics in other countries.