Josh Horwitz

SHANGHAI, (Reuters) – More than 380 brands have earned more than 100 millions yuan (USD15.7 million each) since the beginning of time. Alibaba The company announced that the Singles Day Festival was launched by (NYSE:) Group on Thursday.

Online blitz takes place over 11 days with some of the most exciting deals being concentrated during two discounted periods (Nov. 1-3 and November 11. The online blitz generated $74 Billion in sales last year. This is also known as “gross product value” (GMV).

Alibaba has reduced the nL4N2RO2XZ marketing hype this year, despite strict regulatory oversight. However, the event is still a major draw for many millions of shoppers and merchants with livestreamers selling everything from skincare to shoes.

China’s top livestreaming hosts Li Jiaqi, and Viya began livestreaming in October 20. According to Chinese media, they sold over 11.5 billion and 8.53 trillion yuan respectively.

Analysts expect Alibaba to show a modest increase in GMV, but they point out slow retail sales, shortages of power and COVID-19 lockdowns.

This year, the company decided to eliminate an audience from its annual entertainment gala and not provide a media center for reporters. The reason is COVID-19. Instead, it decided to stream the event live.

Benedict Cumberbatch was a British actor who played Sherlock Holmes. He provided clues for the host’s puzzles via video message. Before the pandemic hit, singles’ day galas featured live performances from stars like Pharrell Williams and Taylor Swift.

Track star Su Bingtian, the first Chinese person to compete in the men’s 100-meter final at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, also appeared this year, along with other Chinese celebrities and performers.

Alibaba is a regular target during the year of regulatory tightening by Chinese authorities.

After criticising Chinese regulators last year, Jack Ma, China’s most prominent entrepreneur, was penalized a record $2.8 million by the e-commerce company.

The crackdown has continued into Singles’ Day. Guangdong Province’s regulators met up with many ecommerce companies including Alibaba on Nov. 5 to talk about anticompetitive practices, counterfeit merchandise and other concerns.

Alibaba did not comment on the meeting.

($1 = 6.3916 renminbi)