Author | Huang Yu Editor | Liu Baodan Last year, thanks to the success of the "Speeding" on iQiyi, the company has had a difficult time recently. On the one hand, the explosively popular TV series is on hiatus, and on the other hand, the derivative concert of the variety show "Plant Some Goodness" has been criticized for "free offline but paid online." According to Wall Street News, the second Wheat Field Music Festival, produced by iQiyi's reality show "Plant Some Goodness," was held on June 6th. Some viewers had previously received free offline tickets through official activities, while online viewers, even iQiyi members, had to pay RMB 12 for viewing, and the viewing period was valid until June 14th. This differentiated pricing model has caused dissatisfaction among many viewers, who question that iQiyi's move is "cutting corners." In response, iQiyi's customer service said, "You can buy tickets to watch the concert live according to your own needs, and the edited content of the concert will be launched on the main platform in the future." In fact, this is not the first time that long video platforms represented by iQiyi have been accused of "cutting corners." In recent years, membership grading systems, early access, and inventory restrictions have often caused user backlash, in addition to paying extra for derivative programs. The differential pricing model reflects the growth anxiety faced by long-form video platforms such as "i优腾."

In today's weather is good. Today's weather is good.

A year ago, Cainiao, which was planning to go public on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, launched its self-operated express delivery business, Cainiao Express. Despite the shelving of its IPO plan, Cainiao Express has been expanding rapidly and accelerating its entry into SF's territory.

Cainiao Express has set its sights on the latest same-city delivery service. On July 11, Cainiao Express announced the launch of same-city express delivery services in Guangzhou, offering same-day delivery in the city. This is the first time Cainiao Express has officially launched same-city delivery services.

According to insiders, Cainiao Express plans to expand into the same-city delivery business, focusing on same-day and half-day delivery services. Currently, it has already launched pilot programs in Henan, Zhejiang, Jiangsu and other regions.

Insiders revealed to Wall Street News that after the Spring Festival this year, Cainiao Express did indeed upgrade its same-city delivery services in many cities, but it is still in the trial phase. With its official launch in Guangzhou, the service may gradually open up to more C-end consumers in the near future.

Currently, Cainiao Express' same-city delivery is only available to businesses in Guangzhou's urban area. For Cainiao Express, this is a cautious decision after launching new business to the market, as small batches of clothing and fresh flower and fruit sellers in Guangzhou see high demand for this service.

Timing and price are the core differences between same-city delivery and normal express delivery.

In the past, sending same-city express delivery in Guangzhou required delivery the next day, with a first-weight price of 12 yuan and a continuation charge of 2 yuan per kilogram. After upgrading to same-city delivery, Cainiao Express can deliver on the same day, with the first-weight price reduced to just 6 yuan and the continuation charge reduced to just 1 yuan per kilogram, a direct 50% discount.

As a newcomer to the same-city delivery field, Cainiao Express' "killer move" is still price.

Publicly available information shows that the current same-city express delivery prices offered by major express delivery companies in Guangzhou's urban area still remain at a first-weight price of 12 yuan and a continuation charge of 2 yuan per kilogram, with SF starting at 16 yuan for same-city delivery. Compared to its competition, Cainiao Express' same-city express delivery boasts a significant price advantage.

When Cainiao Express was launched, the positioning given by Cainiao was to specialize in half-day, same-day, home delivery, and night pick up services. This was widely interpreted as targeting the mid- to high-end market and setting its sights on SF.

Over the past year, facing the highly competitive domestic logistics market, Cainiao Express has been constantly expanding its business ecosystem and growing its business scale. This year, Cainiao Express has also entered the fresh delivery, 'campus mail,' and other areas, hoping to gain a slice of the pie in these industries that SF has already entered.

Cainiao Express' entry into the same-city delivery market is not surprising, as, on the one hand, Cainiao Express has already begun integrating its same-city delivery resources; on the other hand, as a major segment of the logistics industry, the market potential for same-city delivery is considerable.

According to iResearch's data, the scale of China's domestic delivery industry is expected to maintain high double-digit growth between 2023 and 2028, with the industry's scale expected to grow from CNY 341 billion to over CNY 810 billion.

As the leader in the domestic express delivery industry, SF is highly bullish on its same-city business, with its same-city delivery business SF Express not only being spun off and listed at the end of 2021, but also achieving full-year profitability for the first time last year, making it one of the leaders in China's same-city delivery market.

Data shows that SF Express' same-city revenue scale is expected to grow by over 20% YoY to reach CNY 12.39 billion in 2023, and gross profit is expected to grow significantly by 93.5% YoY to CNY 0.795 billion.

Cainiao Express' entry into the same-city delivery sector is seen as a direct challenge to SF Express.

Faced with more and more overlapping business and the pursuit of high timeliness, many insiders believe that Cainiao Express is increasingly resembling SF.

Of course, it must be admitted that, as a newcomer, Cainiao Express will find it difficult to compete with SF et al. for market share. First of all, the competition in China's logistics industry is fierce and growth is limited; second, there is still a certain gap in logistics service capabilities compared to SF.

Against this background, officials at Cainiao Express also revealed that this year, Cainiao Express aims to establish a good reputation and not make increasing scale its top priority.

In addition, for the entire Cainiao Group, the biggest growth point in the future is still Cainiao International Logistics.

Alibaba's financial report shows that in the fiscal year 2024, Cainiao's revenue was 99.02 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 28%, leading the logistics industry in growth, mainly due to cross-border business.

When Alibaba decided to withdraw the listing plan of Cainiao in March of this year, Alibaba Group also emphasized that Cainiao would move towards closer coordination with Alibaba's e-commerce business and global expansion.

In the future, although there will be more and more conflicts with SF, Cainiao will obviously take each step at its own pace.