Tencent to launch WeChat television

Internet giant Tencent Holdings Ltd has teamed up with Future TV, a subsidiary of China Network Television and television maker Skyworth Group to jointly produce smart televisions integrated with the company's popular mobile messaging application WeChat.

The so-called WeChat television is expected to connect WeChat with 30 million Internet TV users in China, Tencent said in a statement, adding that it would also boost the Internet TV market.

The innovative product will enable users to use their mobile phones as the remote control for their television and check for TV programs on their mobile phones through WeChat. What is more, people are also expected to purchase favorite TV programs through WeChat so that they can watch the same from home.

The move marks Tencent's further attempts to expand in the smart television sector. The company had in September joined hands with Beijing-based online video portal LeTV.com to make and sell smart TV sets.

The landscape of the traditional TV market is expected to alter drastically with more Internet companies moving into the smart television sector, said analysts.

According to data provided by AVC-Brand, a consultancy that specializes in research on home appliances, smart TV penetration in China is expected to soar from 27 percent in 2012 to 89 percent by 2015.