We are the leading Chinese language internet search provider. In 2017, we updated
our mission statement to be that “Baidu aims to make a complex world simpler
through technology.” We aim to achieve this mission through our two-pillar
strategy: strengthening our mobile foundation and leading in artificial intelligence
(AI).
Our business currently consists of two segments, Baidu Core and iQIYI. Baidu
Core is primarily comprised of keyword-based marketing services, which target
and are triggered by internet users’ search queries. These services include
P4P services and other online marketing services and AI-enabled new business
initiatives. iQIYI is an innovative market-leading online entertainment service
provider in China. iQIYI’s platform features highly popular original content,
as well as a comprehensive selection of professionally produced and partner-generated
content.
Our website Baidu.com is the largest website in China and the fourth largest
website globally, as measured by average daily visitors and page views during
the three-month period ended December 31, 2017, according to Alexa.com, an internet
analytics firm.
Users. We aspire to provide the best experience to our users. To enrich user
experience, we provide a broad range of products and services accessible through
PCs and mobile devices. We offer search and other services on our Baidu platform
that enables users to be connected to relevant information online, including
web pages, news, images, documents, multimedia files and services, through links
provided on our website and apps. We have invested in advanced technology such
as AI to enhance user experience and deepen user engagement.
Customers. We deliver online marketing services to a diverse customer base
operating in a variety of industries. In 2017, we had approximately 775,000
active online marketing customers. Consistent with previously reported numbers,
the number of active online marketing customers excludes those from the group-buying
and delivery related businesses. The online marketing customers consist of SMEs,
large domestic businesses and multinational companies. Our customer base is
diversified in terms of industries and geographical locations. The defined industries
in which our customers operate include retail and ecommerce, network service,
medical and healthcare, franchise investment, financial services, education,
online games, transportation, construction and decoration, and business services.
Customers in our top five industries contributed approximately 50% of our total
online marketing revenues in 2017. Although we have customers located throughout
China, we have a more active and larger customer base in the coastal regions,
reflecting the current general economic demographics in China.
Customers for iQIYI primarily consist of advertisers, who are counted as part
of our online marketing customers, and membership subscribers of online video
contents.
We reach and serve our customers through our direct sales force as well as
a network of third-party distributors across China. As many of our customers
are SMEs, we use distributors to help us identify potential SME customers, collect
payments and assist SMEs in setting up accounts with us and using our online
marketing services. We have also engaged third-party agencies to identify and
reach potential customers outside of China. Customers use our products and services
through PCs and mobile devices. Mobile revenues accounted for 73.1% of our total
revenues in 2017.
Since early May 2016, we have proactively implemented higher customer verification
standards to improve customer quality and enhance user experience. While the
verification initiative had a short term impact on our business, we believe
the higher standards contribute to a healthier and more sustainable business
for the long term.
Baidu Union Members. Baidu Union consists of a large number of third-party
web content, software and mobile app providers. Baidu Union members can display
on their properties our customers’ promotional links that match the content
of such members’ properties. Some Baidu Union members also embed some
of our products and services onto their properties. We allow Baidu Union members
to provide high-quality and relevant search results to their users without the
cost of building and maintaining advanced search capabilities in-house and to
monetize their traffic through revenue sharing arrangements with us. We reward
Baidu Union members through revenue-sharing arrangements. As a result of our
continued effort to optimize the quality of Baidu Union members, the revenues
contributed by Baidu Union members increased in 2017, along with the growth
of revenues generated by our own properties.
Content Providers. Our content providers mainly consist of video copyright
holders, apps owners who list their apps on our app store for users to download,
users who contribute their valuable and copyrighted content to our products,
and publishers, who share their content through Baijiahao accounts. We provide
these content providers with a broad platform for them to present their content,
and they contribute rich contents and resources to our content ecosystem. If
we generate revenue from utilizing third-party content, we will purchase these
content or share revenue with the content providers based on the terms of pre-agreed
contracts.
Baidu Core
Baidu Core Products and Services for Users
We focus on offering products and services that enable our users to find relevant
information quickly and easily. We offer our main products and services to users
through Baidu App and Baidu.com. These products and services can be accessed
through PCs, mobile and smart devices.
Baidu App. Mobile Baidu, our flagship mobile app, has been rebranded as Baidu
App. The rebranding reflects Baidu App as the main channel to experience Baidu
services. Baidu App enables users to access our Baidu Search, Baidu Feed and
other services using mobile devices, including smartphones. Baidu App supports
text, voice and image search to better serve users of mobile devices. The updated
Baidu App features enhanced voice input, improved feed display, intelligent
search and augmented reality. In the fourth quarter of 2017, our Baidu App users’
total daily time spent increased by approximately 30% from the same quarter
of 2016.
Baidu Search. Users can also access our search and other services through mobile
browsers, with which we have cooperation. In addition to traditional text inputs,
our users can conduct AI-enable search through voice and image. Voice search
integrates speech technology and the search technology to enhance the user experience
by providing a naturalistic input alternative to traditional text input. Image
search enables the use of the mobile device camera to capture images and uses
visual goal automatic detection and recognition. We have endeavored to make
the user experience smoother and more mobile native, through initiatives such
as Top 1, whereby user queries are satisfied in the first, prominently displayed
search result. We also aim to deepen our coverage of richer forms of content,
including images, text, videos, and augmented and virtual reality. Users can
also use Baidu Search to connect with transaction services, such as takeout
delivery, movie ticket bookings, hotel reservations, flight bookings, other
types of local lifestyle services.
Users can also retrieve information through search queries on PC devices. Based
on the keywords in users’ search queries and their search history, web
search can recommend related topics, such as books, historical figures, movies
and games, which may be of interest to the users in order to satisfy their potential
search demands. In addition, we have become one of China’s first search
engines that are fully supportive of collection and search of https resources
by continually promoting distribution of https-related resources, with a view
to building a safer web-ecosystem and pushing forward the overall internet https-ilization
in China.
Baidu Feed. Baidu Feed provides users with personalized timeline to meet their
personal interests reflected in their past online behaviors, such as search
and browsing, and their demographics. Baidu Feed complements our core search
products and existing content ecosystem, and contributes strongly to user loyalty.
In the fourth quarter of 2017, daily content distributed by Baidu Feed grew
by over 20% compared with the prior quarter, and the percentage of video content
distributed in Baidu Feed grew to 40% on average, up from 14% in the same quarter
of the previous year.
Bear Paw Account. Bear Paw Account enables verified brands and businesses to
aggregate their content from websites, wapsites and open-platform apps, which
become searchable in one location and allow users to follow and engage with
brands and businesses. Bear Paw Account provides users with an easy and effective
way for users to access brands and businesses, leveraging our open ecosystem
to secure traffic, retain users, contribute to brand building and achieve growth.
Baijiahao. Baijiahao is a publisher platform for content providers to publish
content and build a fan base online. Baijiahao supports various content formats,
including articles, albums, video, live broadcast, augmented reality and virtual
reality. Our Content Provider AI Platform provides content providers with cutting
edge AI tools to help automatically review material for edits, intelligently
splice video into images, copyright protection, and more. In 2017, the number
of content providers on our Baijiahao platform grew to 1 million at the year
end from over 200,000 at the beginning of the year.
Baidu Post Bar. Baidu Post Bar is a social media platform that attracts users
through topics of common interest. Users post text, image, audio and video content
and reply to original content, thus forming social networks around topics of
discussions. Baidu Post Bar draws new users through close integration with search
and user-generated content. Baidu Post Bar has become a popular platform for
celebrity fans, online game players, online novel readers and virtual local
communities as well as a platform that reflects current cultural trends.
Haokan Videos. Haokan Videos is an online short-form video aggregation platform.
The platform, powered by Baidu’s advanced AI algorithms, curates a rich
and personalized library of user-generated short-form videos for our users.
Haokan Videos also feature a wide array of user-friendly interactive tools,
such as like, subscribe, archive, comment, share and search. Videos content
creators can upload videos onto the platform in order to generate fan-followings
and revenues through sharing arrangements with us.
Baidu Knows. Baidu Knows is a knowledge sharing platform built through interactive
questions and answers among our users. The answers posted on Baidu Knows are
generated by our users and expert residents on the platform, as well as specialists
from businesses and government agencies. Users can access Baidu Knows through
PCs, WAP and mobile apps and are also able to find requested answers to their
questions directly from Baidu Search.
Baidu Encyclopedia. Baidu Encyclopedia is an evolving encyclopedia compiled
by registered users. Baidu Encyclopedia’s contents are generated by registered
users who are experts in their respective fields, including medical care and
studio arts. Baidu Encyclopedia has produced a number of characteristic columns,
such as Encyclopedia of Intangible Cultural Heritage, Digital Museum and Recorder
of History, among others, which aim to meet the high-quality content requirements
of users. Baidu Encyclopedia is transitioning to a complete video-based knowledge
source enabling users to acquire knowledge through short videos to enhance user
experience.
Baidu Education. Baidu Education is an online platform of educational resources,
whose products include Baidu WenKu, Baidu Yuedu and Baidu Classroom. Baidu WenKu
is a repository of valuable documents and materials with a wide coverage of
more than 50 disciplines in fundamental education, engineering sciences and
technologies. Baidu Yuedu provides valuable library resources and personalized
content recommendation. Baidu Classroom covers more than one million knowledge
graphs, which can be utilized to aid teaching and study.
Baidu Mobile Assistant. Baidu Mobile Assistant is a mobile app marketplace
designed for Android mobile devices. The platform offers an extensive and diversified
array of apps, and selects and recommends high-quality apps based on big data
analytics. Baidu Mobile Assistant helps users manage their smartphones, allowing
users to download, upgrade, manage and delete apps easily and conveniently.
Additionally, Baidu Mobile Assistant helps users optimize device memory and
clean junk files. Through Mobile Open Platform, Baidu Mobile Assistant offers
various skills for app developers, granting developers access to numerous apps
and service contents. Baidu Mobile Assistant also helps app developers reach
users through its app distribution and advertising platform.
Baidu Mobile Guardian. Baidu Mobile Guardian is a comprehensive phone security
software, using mobile anti-virus technology. It can provide users with free
system optimization, mobile handset accelerator, garbage data cleaning, system
vulnerability defense, virus sweeper, data privacy, harassing phone intercept,
secure payment and other features.
DuerOS. DuerOS is a conversational AI platform that enables hardware devices
to hear, understand and fulfill the users’ needs through voice activation.
DuerOS has more than 130 partners building over 50 DuerOS-powered hardware products,
including televisions, smart speakers, smartphones, smart headsets and more.
DuerOS Intelligent Device Platform has launched turn-key solutions to cover
various form factors, including televisions, smart speakers, smartphones, smart
headsets and smart robots. DuerOS Bots Platform has attracted many developers
to the ecosystem. Through DuerOS-powered devices, users can access DuerOS-powered
skills in domains, including video and audio, smart home, information, entertainment
and services, and more.
Baidu Wallet. Baidu Wallet, formerly branded as BaiduPay, provides online and
mobile payment services and enables our users to complete a closed loop transaction
in a seamless manner, including purchases of local dining/takeout delivery offerings
and transfers and bill payments. In addition, as our key financial services
portal, Baidu Wallet mobile app integrates advanced data technology and is able
to recommend consumer financing products or investment products that best fits
users’ demand.
Baidu Consumer Credit. Baidu Consumer Credit mainly provides installment payment
services to consumers and services tens of millions of users through education
loans and consumer financing to meet consumers’ cash expenditure needs.
Baidu Consumer Credit leverages search traffic to build multi-dimensional service
access for multi-scenario customer reach, based on data mining to help accurately
profile users. Additionally, Baidu Consumer Credit uses big data and AI technology
as the foundation for its risk control and review system, enabling targeted
user identification and streamlined credit review and approval.
Baidu Wealth Management. Baidu Wealth Management provides wealth management
services by leveraging big data and technology. Baidu Wealth Management uses
AI technology to analyze user risk profiles and Baidu data analytical capabilities
to holistically assess the potential risks and returns for investment products.
Baidu Wealth Management has established a team of experienced wealth management
professionals to serve our customers.
Baidu Maps. Baidu Maps provides services relating to locations and intelligent
routing and navigation. Baidu Maps aggregates and optimizes available, cost-effective
traffic options and displays route timing and costs. Baidu Maps has also enabled
intelligent voice assistant functionality.
Baidu Cloud Drive. Baidu Cloud Drive, formerly named Baidu Netdisk, is a personal
cloud service platform. Users can upload personal data, such as documents, photos
and address books from various devices, to Baidu Cloud Drive, and access their
data from computing devices at any time. In 2017, Baidu Cloud Drive launched
an AI-based intelligent cloud-based file management system that features picture
classification, facial photo Search and ID intelligent identification function.
Global Business. We offer numerous mobile products and services for emerging
and developed markets around the world. Our smartphone apps for overseas markets
include DU Battery Saver, DU Speed Booster, ES File Explorer, DU Recorder, DU
Caller, Photo Wonder, Simeji Japanese keyboard, Facemoji Keyboard and many other
apps. Our mobile advertising solution, DU Ad Platform, is available to Android
and iOS developers in over 200 countries and regions worldwide. Currently, thousands
of developers worldwide use DU Ad Platform to maximize their monetization efficiency.