How Interactive Video Ads Are Redefining Brand Engagement – Insights from iQIYI’s White Paper

iQIYI recently published an "Interactive Video Advertising White Paper" that provides a systematic guide for brands to create more immersive and engaging interactive video ads. Building on the Interactive Video Platform (IVP) that produced the industry’s first interactive ad in the 2019 season of "China’s New Rap," the white paper formalizes this innovation within iQIYI’s advertising standards.

The document explains the background and concept of interactive video ads, classifies them into interactive pre‑roll and native formats, and recommends creation and delivery strategies. Advertisers can add branching storylines, perspective switches, and on‑screen information exploration, enabling two‑way interaction with viewers. Performance can be measured through metrics such as play count, interaction count, and choice bias, guiding ad evaluation and content iteration.

An example highlighted is a shampoo ad embedded in "China’s New Rap" 2019, where users select different storylines based on personal preference, allowing the brand’s core message to appear across multiple narratives and achieving a two‑way communication model that blends variety‑show IP, native creativity, and interactive technology.

According to iResearch, native ads are projected to account for 53.4% of China’s online advertising spend by 2020, marking a new trend in video advertising. iQIYI’s interactive format breaks the traditional one‑way information flow, prompting users to actively choose ad paths, extending exposure time, and enhancing communication effectiveness, thereby offering strategic guidance for brand advertising.

The white paper also standardizes the development model for interactive video ads, leveraging iQIYI’s interactive video standards and platform support to foster diverse, creative ad formats. This aims to provide brands and content producers with more efficient marketing and monetization channels, driving innovation and upgrading the advertising ecosystem.

Looking ahead, as interactive technology, user habits, and market conditions evolve, interactive video ads are expected to become more varied and become a new normal in advertising. Since May, iQIYI has promoted interactive video standards across film, variety shows, and advertising, using a "standard + tool + template" approach to expand the boundaries of interactive video and accelerate its industrialization, achieving a three‑step progression from methodology to practical application and commercial exploration.