In the Chinese world of online literature, "god" and "goddess" are mortals - Chinese readers use these terms for their beloved online writers to show their respect for an ability to create many imaginary worlds for the enjoyment of readers.

Much of online literature consists of novels that the authors update daily with new content. Every day, millions of Chinese will refresh their browsers or apps time and time again, just to keep up with the latest daily updates of their favorite reads. This is a unique feature of Chinese online literature, according to Ma Ji, researcher and critic with the Chinese Writers Association.

The number of readers clinging to online literature is so huge that Baidu, one of China's top Internet service providers, has decided on a big move to make the most of it.

The Internet giant held a news conference in Beijing last week to announce the establishment of its literature branch brand, Baidu Literature, which will coordinate all its online services and resources to create new online literary "gods" and "goddesses", and develop literary derivatives, such as movies, dramas, animation and games.

In 2012, the market of users' paid subscriptions, patents and advertisement on online literature websites and apps was worth 1.7 billion yuan ($276 million). In 2013, it was worth 3.1 billion yuan, and the number is expected to reach 5.1 billion yuan this year, according to a report issued by Baidu at the media event.

"Devoted fans of literary works are not only readers. They are also inclined to be loyal audiences of dramas and movies adapted from the literature, or players of games and fans of animation," says Zhang Dongchen, a vice-president of Baidu.

"Baidu has a wide range of online services and has accumulated numerous users over the years, which means it is easy for us to have a large user base for online literature works to achieve the derivatives' market potentials."

Baidu Literature has multiple online literature websites and apps, to provide writers with a well-structured platform and to encourage original works, Zhang says.

Supportive Baidu service divisions, such as search engines and online forums, will recommend online writers and literature works likely to be of interest to Internet users, based on data collected on their Internet behavior.

Fang Xiang, an analyst with Baidu, cites the example of Dao Jian Shen Huang, or the God and Emperor of Knives and Swords. The fantasy novel was not famous after it first appeared online earlier this year, ranking at 200 on Baidu's most-searched online literature list. But after Fang's team recommended the novel to readers with similar interests, the novel climbed into the top 50.

In July, the company also kicked off a selection of cover girls for Dao Jian Shen Huang. Hundreds of young women uploaded their photos to the Internet to attract netizens' votes.

They received 600,000 votes and their photos had millions of clicks, according to Chinese media reports.

Similar cover-girl selections have also been held for later online works.

Baidu Literature intends to continue its practice of launching interactive events - both online and offline - to promote online writers and their works, says Zhang, the Baidu vice-president, while paying great attention to patent protection.

liuzhihua@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 12/03/2014 page19)