CEO of China's largest livestreaming platform Douyu arrested

CNN cited a statement from the Chengdu Police Department on November 22, saying that Mr. Chen Shaojie was accused of organizing illegal gambling. Meanwhile, a representative of Douyu (Fighting Fish) said that their CEO was arrested on November 16, but the company has not received any official notice about the investigation or the reason for Mr. Chen Shaojie's arrest.

Xinhua News Agency also confirmed the arrest of Mr. Tran Thieu Kiet and cited the announcement of Chengdu police.

According to Douyu's announcement, Mr. Tran Thieu Kiet's arrest has significantly affected the company's business operations. In fact, Douyu's shares immediately fell 6% in New York after news of the arrest spread.

CNN previously reported that CEO Chen had been missing for at least three weeks and had not been seen in public since August. Chinese media said that Chen's absence was related to authorities discovering pornography and gambling content on the Douyu platform.

In May, Douyu was subjected to an "unscheduled visit" by the Cyberspace Administration of China to investigate "serious" issues related to the platform.

Mr. Tran Thieu Kiet founded Douyu in 2014 and quickly built it into one of China's most valuable startups, with about 400 million regular viewers.

With its shark logo, it is one of many companies that build content around broadcasting online gaming matches. It is based on the basic need of gamers to show off their skills and share their views and experiences with fans. Later, the content was expanded to other types such as cooking, cosmetic tips and outdoor sports activities.

Often compared to Amazon's Twitch service, backed by global gaming giant Tencent, Douyu became the fastest growing technology company in Asia-Pacific in 2019. In just the first 3 years, Douyu's revenue increased more than 700 times, with annual revenue of 3-5 billion USD.

Tra Khanh (Source: CNN)

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