The Baidu Encyclopedia App, which has been downloaded over 20 million times, will be shut down. Is it because it is not making money?

This article explores the reasons why Baidu Encyclopedia App was taken offline, analyzes the possible business logic and market strategy behind its lack of profitability, and gives you an in-depth understanding of the life cycle of Internet products. I hope it will be helpful to you.

Recently, Baidu Encyclopedia sent an App offline notification to users. The notification mentioned: The Baidu Encyclopedia team decided to shut down the Baidu Encyclopedia App service on June 30, 2024. Users can use the "Baidu Encyclopedia" applet in the Baidu App to continue to experience the product.

Baidu Encyclopedia was launched in 2006, when Yu Jun, a well-known product manager in the Internet circle, was also at Baidu. In 2012, the Baidu Encyclopedia App was officially launched. The App Store shows that on April 23, 2024, Baidu Encyclopedia was also updated to version 5.3.10.

According to Guo Jing's observation of the Internet circle, the cumulative downloads of Baidu Encyclopedia App in mainstream Android app stores such as Huawei App Market, Xiaomi App Store, Baidu Mobile Assistant, and App Store are nearly 18 million. If the downloads on the App Store are included, the cumulative downloads of Baidu Encyclopedia since its launch have exceeded 20 million times.

This data is a good report card for a startup company, but if it is compared with the products of major companies such as Tencent, Alibaba, ByteDance, and Baidu, a 12-year-old app has only 20 million cumulative downloads, which is not enough.

The poor download data of Baidu Encyclopedia App is only one of the factors for the product to be taken offline. Another problem is the product value. Yu Jun mentioned in "Yu Jun Product Methodology" that enterprises use products as a medium to exchange value with users and achieve the purpose of creating commercial value. What Baidu Encyclopedia App lost is precisely its product value.

On the one hand, users have limited demand for encyclopedia knowledge. Even if there is a relevant demand, it can be met through search engine products such as Baidu, Toutiao search, and WeChat search. Baidu Encyclopedia is included and there is no need for it to be an independent App. Even if users download the Baidu Encyclopedia App, its opening rate will not be high. After all, people prefer to browse short videos, news, and novels rather than a cold encyclopedia tool.

On the other hand, there is a conflict between Baidu Baike App and Baidu. Users can directly go to Baidu App to learn about the content of Baike, so why go to the next app? Therefore, it is normal for Baidu Baike App to make use of its residual heat and guide users to Baidu App.

Domestic products similar to Baidu Encyclopedia, such as Sogou Encyclopedia, Douyin Encyclopedia, 360 Encyclopedia, etc., have not launched independent App products. Only Baidu Encyclopedia has launched an independent App.

Encyclopedia is a huge content platform. As an independent app, this type of platform can only provide limited value to users. Therefore, Baidu Encyclopedia's downloads on the App Store have been mediocre. Qimai data shows that the average daily downloads of Baidu Encyclopedia App on the App Store in the past three months are less than 500 times. If we look at the retention rate, opening rate, and user usage time data, it must be even worse.

The closure of Baidu Baike App is also closely related to the fact that the product is not profitable. It is a typical tool-type product that cannot rely on user payments and has no connection with the main profit points of the Internet industry (e-commerce, games, advertising). This has led to the product being supported for a long time. As long as the company tightens its budget, such projects are most likely to be closed.

However, the closure of Baidu Encyclopedia App has little impact on Baidu itself. The download volume of this App is not high, and it does not affect the rights of old users. Users can use Baidu App to meet their own needs. Baidu's 2023 financial report shows that in December 2023, the number of monthly active users of Baidu App reached 667 million. The users of Baidu App are the basic base of Baidu, and Baidu Encyclopedia is not even on the list.

The decommissioning of the Baidu Encyclopedia App is also closely related to the cost reduction and efficiency improvement efforts of the Internet industry in the past two years. All Internet giants are considering profit margins, and unprofitable projects will be closed if possible. The decommissioning of the Baidu Encyclopedia App obviously also has this consideration.

Author: Guo Jing, WeChat public account: Guo Jing's Internet Circle,