Has the responsibility for performance also become "virtual"?, The promised gift has not been fulfilled for a year! After the platform sparked a wave of virtual anchors
For a long time in the past, the most common thing Little Tiger did every day was to take turns opening several social media platforms to see if there were any messages from his favorite anchors.
This habit originated from April last year. At that time, he was bored and wandering around the "Station B" when an "interesting" anchor suddenly appeared on the screen: the virtual anime image shook his head, the expression on his face changed with the laughter coming from the receiver, and occasionally a large section of fluent spoken foreign language attracted his attention. So, he began his journey of chasing stars. Over the past year, he has spent over 10000 yuan on just scrolling bullet comments and gifts.
However, an unexpected storm forced him to stop his pursuit of stars. The frequency of live streaming by the anchor has increased from almost once a day to twice a week, and the promised gifts have also been delayed. After repeated unsuccessful reminders, Little Tiger's enthusiasm gradually calmed down. Now, when it comes to this anchor again, only one thought remains in his mind: When will I get my "To sign"?
Promise: Assist in charging 10000 ships and get a To sign
As the main active platform for virtual anchors in China, Bilibili has built a professional and mainstream performance stage for virtual artists. It has more than 60 virtual anchors with diverse personalities, and Xiaohu loves one of them.
"The leather covers look good, the speech is interesting, and there are also memes, making it very enjoyable to watch live broadcasts." Like Xiaohu, Xie Ran also joined the anchor's support team. She told reporters that in the industry, the images used by these virtual anchors are called "leather covers", while the anchors themselves are called "people of the middle". The reason why this anchor has hundreds of thousands of fans is closely related to the humorous and outgoing personality of the "middle person" and the striving and striving elite persona. "He is very hardworking, and one person has two leather sleeves."
Some scholars have analyzed the reasons for the fire of virtual anchors in their papers, "These anchors have exquisite cartoon images. They communicate and interact with fans through pop-up screens and paid messages, so that fans can feel connected with the desired anime characters. In front of the virtual anchors, subculture lovers can fully meet friends, and constantly strengthen their identity in the interaction with the anchors, thus strengthening the emotional connection with the anchors."
It is this emotional connection that brings the anchor and hundreds of thousands of fans together in the same live broadcast room. In order to show their presence and express their love in front of the anchor, many fans have chosen the simplest and most brutal way - spending money. "There are many methods, such as purchasing 'eye-catching messages' and' boat tickets', and some people even spend money to have their hands draw portraits for the anchor in order to get a reply." Xiao Hu, who spent more than 10000 yuan, is particularly familiar with this.
Bilibili has a monthly ticket mechanism called "Big Voyage", also known as live streaming fleet. Fans can spend money to purchase different levels of "ship tickets" and receive certain virtual benefits, from which the anchor can share. The prices for different titles vary. The captain is 198 yuan/month, the commander is 1998 yuan/month, and the governor is 19998 yuan/month. "'Wanjian Achievement 'refers to the fact that more than 10000 people in the live broadcast room of the anchor have purchased at least a captain's or above ship tickets, which is an important indicator of whether the anchor's live broadcast is profitable and also an indicator of whether a anchor is popular. Xie Ran remembers that on July 18, 24:00 last year, it happened to be the deadline for the anchor to sell captain gift boxes. In order to obtain gifts such as postcards, more than 9000 people had purchased captain's tickets at the time of the broadcast. Although the anchor had advised fans to make rational purchases more than once during the live broadcast, there were still many bullet comments claiming to help the anchor impact' Wanjian Achievement '.".
The major navigation project of Station △ B.
The reporter found the live broadcast replay of the day on the platform. In the video, while expressing concerns about the pressure it brings to fans, the anchor also candidly expressed his feelings, "I would be very happy if I could 'ship ten thousand ships'." In addition, he promised that in addition to the gift box, he would also give fans who purchase the supervisor an additional "To sign", which is a postcard with the fan's name and the idol's handwritten signature. "Generally, in order to stimulate fans, anchors will prepare captain gift boxes, and add gifts such as badges, dolls, etc. if they are promoted to the governor or governor. It seems like he is giving a To sign for the first time, which is a very rare gift for fans," said fan Xiao Y.
Recharging "Captain" will result in corresponding gift boxes.
The "governor" and "governor" received more gifts.
As a result, Xiaohu immediately placed an order, and the live broadcast room achieved a "10000 ship achievement" on the same day.
Waiting: No deadline for receiving goods
In Weibo Super Talk, the questioning about the To signature has never stopped. In early August, a post reviewed the whole story: On July 18, 2022, the anchor promised to give To tags to fans who purchased "supervisors"; There was no news in the middle until April 27th of this year, when he replied to fans' inquiries in the Weibo comment section, claiming that the To signature had been completed. On May 25th, he posted that the To visa had been sent out from abroad. On July 14th, the Bilibili property management account sent information on the collection of To signature mailing addresses to eligible fans. "I thought I would get my own To sign soon, but another month has passed and I haven't even seen a trace of it." The poster was written by Xiao Hu, and his patience was exhausted through repeated reminders. "Even our fans in the group are getting a bit impatient waiting." Some fans who have been waiting for the To sign have chosen to complain on the Black Cat platform: Bilibili anchor has been delaying the delivery of the supervisor gift for a year.
On Weibo, someone reviewed the beginning and end of this incident.
On the other hand, Xie Ran, who is also a fan, understood the anchor's "procrastination" and said, "There are many situations where the anchor promises to give gifts during live broadcasts in order to make fans become captains and supervisors. Sometimes, even if they say it verbally, it cannot always be fulfilled. Moreover, there is no clear time, and fans can only wait." She added a detail that cannot be ignored: in October last year, the anchor caused a sensation in the entire virtual anchor circle due to a dispute with other anchors. In the end, the account was officially banned by Bilibili for 8 months, and it was not until June this year that normal updates resumed. ". "This incident has had a great impact on the anchor. During the account suspension period, gifts may not have been arranged in a timely manner, and some fans have even lost their followers due to this incident."
Xiaohu is not certain whether to "lose fans". But he believes that the promises made by anchors to fans should not be empty talk. "Fans are willing to purchase supervisors and speak up for you when there is controversy. Should the anchor also respond to fans' expectations?" What he finds most difficult to understand is that for a year, the anchor ignored fans' inquiries. "Although Bilibili was banned, other social media accounts are operating normally. You have time and energy to post updates, why can't you tell fans the specific delivery time and arrangement?"
Just as Xiaohu contacted the reporter, some fans of Weibo Super Talk posted their To tags one after another. Not long after, Xiaohu and his friends also received this long-awaited gift. However, before the excitement subsided, Xiaohu realized that the postcards he and his friends received were not the same as the one he had been asked to write. "The content is completely different," he said
The To sign received by Little Tiger's friend does not match the content they requested.
With the development of virtual anchors, similar disputes are not uncommon. The reporter searched for keywords on social media platforms and Black Cat Complaints, and found that multiple anchors promised to give gifts or provide services to their fans during live broadcasts, but failed to fulfill their promises in a timely manner after the fans finished their purchases. For example, a virtual idol group was complained of sending gifts to people who filled out information in the background more than a week before the collective shipment without prior notice, and many fans expressed dissatisfaction with this practice.
Confused: How do fans protect their rights?
"For a while, I didn't know who to turn to for an explanation." The confused Xiaohu finally decided to file a complaint with the platform, requesting a refund. Customer service said, "Da Hai Hai belongs to the online delivery category of goods, and purchasing after agreeing to the agreement cannot be refunded." This led to a deadlock in rights protection.
△ Platform customer service response.
"The image of a virtual anchor is virtual, but the actual controllers, companies, and institutions behind it are real, and the responsibilities and obligations to be undertaken are also real." said Liu Zeruo, a lawyer at Shanghai Pushi Wanlian Law Firm.
The reporter learned that at present, the virtual anchors seen on various platforms can be roughly divided into two types: for example, the virtual anchors launched by TV stations belong to pure AI virtual anchors, while the images of real people based anime or real people formed through various technologies belong to real person driven virtual anchors, and the latter can be subdivided into two categories: one is the virtual anchors that do not share the identity with real people, and rely on a large number of special effects and CG animations to complete, with a low degree of real person participation. Legally speaking, the responsible party is the developer or IP owner; Another type is virtual anchors who have identity identity with real people. These anchors are usually digital avatars of real people, and their speeches, actions, and interactions are completely dependent on and synchronized with real people. Therefore, real people are undoubtedly the responsible parties subject to legal supervision.
On June 22, 2022, the State Administration of Radio and Television and the Ministry of Culture and Tourism jointly issued the "Code of Conduct for Internet Broadcasters", which clarified the scope and boundaries of broadcasters, including virtual broadcasters and those who upload audio and video programs to speak and appear on screen.
Since the legal liability subject exists, it is necessary to comply with the "Norms" and not engage in various behaviors, including deceiving consumers through false promises, using promotional methods such as "gift drawing" to imply, entice, and encourage users to give large rewards. Can fans defend their rights based on this? Liu Zeruo has some hidden concerns about this. "From a legal perspective, the act of fans purchasing a supervisor is a contractual relationship established with the platform for online services, and the consideration formed by the money is the title of supervisor. As for the promises made by the anchor during the live broadcast, it is more like a gift. For example, when buying rice and giving cups as gifts, the merchant only needs to ensure that the rice is not falsely advertised. As for the cups, they do not fall within the scope of the online service contract. In addition, the promise has not been implemented on paper, and according to Article 479 of the Civil Code, the legal concept of commitment is the expression of the offeree's agreement to make an offer, while the virtual anchor's" promise "does not specify the specific content, form, and is also not specified." It is not easy for fans to request a refund of the money recharged to the platform without clearly pointing to a specific subject.
However, she stated that according to the Notice on Strengthening the Management of Game Live Streaming on Online Audiovisual Program Platforms, online live streaming publishers, online live streaming service institutions, and online live streaming platforms should actively assist businesses and consumers in safeguarding their legitimate rights and interests, and establish convenient and effective online complaint, reporting, and dispute resolution mechanisms; Article 17 of the "Regulations" also clearly assigns the main responsibility to online performances, online audio-visual platforms, and brokerage institutions, requiring them to strictly fulfill their legal responsibilities and obligations, establish and improve internal institutional norms such as the entry, training, daily management, business rating archives, and "red and yellow card" management of online anchors. The E-commerce Law also grants platforms the right to resolve disputes through internal mechanisms, "in which the platform may have to bear more responsibility."
It can be said that the emergence of virtual anchors has brought new forms of entertainment to online users. According to the "2023 China Virtual Anchor Industry Research Report" by iMedia Consulting, the market size and core market size driven by virtual humans in China were 186.61 billion yuan and 12.08 billion yuan respectively in 2022, and it is expected to reach 640.27 billion yuan and 48.06 billion yuan respectively by 2025. How can the industry develop healthily and sustainably? Perhaps all parties need to take the initiative to move forward: platforms should actively assume their own responsibilities, strengthen supervision, and establish smooth and feasible problem-solving mechanisms. Virtual anchors should also cherish their feathers, keep their promises, and protect the rights and interests of consumers. Cultural and tourism administrative departments, broadcasting and television administrative departments, and cultural market comprehensive law enforcement agencies should further strengthen law enforcement inspections on online performances, online audio-visual platforms, and brokerage institutions. Legislative bodies suggest strengthening cutting-edge legislation. Of course, as fans with complete civil behavior, they should also be more rational in their consumption.
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