The Limitations of Digital Media Paywalls and the Impact of Video Content on User Engagement: A Case Study of Mango TV's "Singer"

Digital media's growth has popularized paywall strategies like VIP membership. Using Mango TV's "Singer" program as a case study, this research explores how paid versus non-paid video content differently influences user participation. VIP users gain higher perceived value from exclusive content, deriving emotional connection not just from the material but also from identity recognition and community belonging. Conversely, non-VIP user participation relies more on social platforms' secondary dissemination and fragmented consumption. They access core program information through free content but have limited engagement depth, often supplementing resource scarcity with lightweight interactions like comments and forwards. This model reduces economic costs for non-paying users but risks exacerbating a "digital divide." Paying users experience immersive content via a closed-loop ecosystem, while non-paying users typically consume algorithmically recommended fragments. Consequently, participation motivation for non-VIPs often shifts from content consumption to social maintenance. The payment strategy fundamentally reshapes user behavior and social connections. VIP systems foster a sense of scarcity through "exclusive rights," transforming cultural participation into hierarchical symbols. Non-paying users instead maintain presence through "social monetization," like sharing free content for attention. This differentiation offers platforms a dual monetization path: direct profit from membership fees, alongside expanded traffic pools leveraging non-paying users' social dissemination. Thus, paywalls strategically segment users, driving revenue directly from VIPs while harnessing non-VIPs for audience reach.