The knowledge-monetization industry has taken off in China in recent months. One prominent example is the audio-based, knowledge-sharing platform Fenda, through which users pay to pose questions to celebrities and professionals. Although Fenda's success is partially due to its ability to attract celebrity users, the platform spotlights a new business model for the knowledge-sharing economy. In line with the broader sharing economy, the model is forecast by some analysts to have great potential to grow. Yet others warned that it may take time for the Chinese public to accept platforms that require them to pay for knowledge.

(From left to right) Feng Lun, Luo Zhenyu, Zhang Quanling and Zhang Ziyi are some of the Chinese celebrities whose participation has helped popularize the online question-and-answer application Fenda, which allows users to ask questions of celebrities and professionals for a fee. Photo: CFP

"As the son of China's richest man, is there anything you cannot afford?"

The question was posed to Wang Sicong, the son of Dalian Wanda Group Chairman Wang Jianlin, on an online question-and-answer (Q&A) application called Fenda. The user who asked the question paid 3,000 yuan ($450) for Wang's answer.

Later, Wang responded the question in a minute-long voice message. And more than 23,000 Fenda users paid 1 yuan to "eavesdrop" on Wang's answer.

On the same platform, Wang has also answered questions about his ex-girlfriends and personal live. So far, he has earned 270,000 yuan by answering 32 questions - almost all of which have received wide media attention.

The platform, which was developed by the knowledge-sharing website guokr.com, allows users to ask questions directly to celebrities and professionals, at a price ranging from 1 yuan to 20,000 yuan. The person answering sets the price. The answer is delivered in a voice message no longer than 60 seconds.

Other users can "eavesdrop" on the answer for 1 yuan. The proceeds from the eavesdropping is split between the user who posted the question, the user who answered it and Fenda, which takes 10 percent as a commission.

Fenda has been a success since it launched on May 5. According to a statement the company sent to the Global Times on Wednesday, the online application has attracted more than 10 million users, including 1 million paid users.

Around 330,000 professionals have opened channels in Fenda, producing a total of 500,000 answers that generated over 18 million yuan.

Fenda's business sheds light on the knowledge-monetization industry, which is built upon the concept that people will pay for knowledge they deem valuable. There has been an explosion in such businesses this year.

On April 1, the knowledge-sharing community Zhihu implemented a similar service within its mobile application. Zhihu followed up with the launch of its Zhihu Live mobile application in May, through which users can join live talks on specific topics given by experts, for a fee.

China's search giant Baidu has also joined in. It launched a consultant service called Wenka in April.

In 2015, Fenda's owner guokr.com established a paid platform called Zaihang, where users can pay a fee for offline face-to-face Q&A sessions with experts.

"It is estimated that more applications for paid professionally-generated content (PGC) will spring up in the second half year of 2016, intensifying competition in the industry," Ma Shicong, an industry analyst with Enfodesk, told the Global Times.

Fueled by fans

Currently, public figures including actress Zhang Ziyi, property tycoon Feng Lun, and well-known playwright Shi Hang, have answered questions on Fenda.

Experts noted that Fenda owes much of its rapid rise in popularity to the celebrity effect.

Nobody paid much attention to Fenda in the first two weeks after it went live. It wasn't until a number of artists and celebrities opened personal accounts that the masses started flocking to the platform, Caixin Weekly reported in July, citing company CEO Ji Shisan.

"But this also raises questions about the Fenda's profitability," Ma said. "What if Fenda is merely feeding public curiosity into the personal lives of celebrities without considering long-term sustainable development? What happens after the questions about celebrities have been exhausted? Is one minute long enough to make a qualified answer?"

The company needs to step up efforts to control the quality of posted questions, said Men Changhui, analyst from Beijing-based CCID Consulting.

In the long-run, celebrities are unlikely to be the main active users on the platform once the fan frenzy cools down, said Shu Xin, Fenda's public relations director.

"Fenda is now cultivating professionals in vertical areas like psychology, medicine and finance," Shu said.

The new frontier

Despite the concern, the new business model has piqued the capital market's interest in the knowledge-monetization industry.

In June, Fenda raised $25 million in its first round of fundraising, taking the company's estimated value to $100 million. It raised the money from venture fund investors like Vision Plus Capital and Sequoia Capital, the company's CEO said at a press conference.

Zaihang completed its series A funding round in late 2015, winning investments from venture capitalists such as Alpha Startups and Kunlun Group. The round valued the company at 200 million yuan.

The new model gives the public access to professionals and celebrities who might otherwise be difficult to approach, especially the skilled and experienced professionals generally available in first-tier cities, Ma noted.

For example, Zhang Yu, a doctor at the prestigious Peking Union Medical College Hospital is among the top earners on Fenda. Zhang has earned more than 170,000 yuan by answering 314 questions related to her areas of expertise, reproductive health.

"Online information is not always reliable and the payment scheme contributes to the quality of the answer." Men said.

Another benefit of this model is that it meets the public's demand for a look inside the private lives of celebrities, experts noted. 

The knowledge-monetization model also fits into the trend of the sharing economy, where people get connected to make better use of idle resources such as cars and apartments.

The redistribution of resources has reshaped China's market and produced local Internet giants like Didi Chuxing, a leading player in the legalized online ride-hailing industry.

Information is the new frontier in the era of sharing economy, Ma said.

Despite its promising future, investors have also expressed concern about whether the public can accept this new model.

"Chinese Internet users are spoiled by free information on the Internet, or even accustomed to subsides provided by mobile applications. Are they willing to pay for high quality online content?" Jian Lan, the co-founder of GSR Ventures, told the Global Times on Friday.

Another problem is whether the upgrade of consumption is in step with the increase in the amounts charged for online PGC, Ma noted.

"Only time will tell," Jian said.