Beijing (PingWest)- JOOX, Tencent’s music streaming app, has seen a 50% surge in users, as the coronavirus outbreak changes the way people entertain themselves.

For those stuck at home and trying to avoid infection, it’s also changed how people use technology.

According to Tencent’s vice president Poshu Yeung, the app recorded a jump in both users singing Karaoke and audiences watching music streaming.

“There is an emerging trend that video-related content service is experiencing golden times for growth during the pandemic. The usage of karaoke increased by 30% to 50% during the period of time,” said Poshu Yeung, vice president of Tencent’s International Business group.

Tencent launched the Joox app in Hong Kong in 2015, with an ambition to fulfil surging demand for digital music service across the Asia-Pacific. In addition to Hong Kong, JOOX now operates in five key markets in Southeast Asia including Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand and South Africa.

Joox was the most downloaded music streaming app in Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand, according to a report by market researcher Ipsos in 2018.

The app’s karaoke feature allows users to sing along with friends and receive online gifts purchased with virutal coins in the app.

Yeung said the good news is that some users in the five markets are now willing to pay and this trend has grown rapidly, although paid users still a small portion of the total subscribers.

To attract more paid users, JOOX has added new features that allow users to use virtual coins to purchase VIP membership and send virtual gifts to friends and live-streamers who host activities including Karaoke, livestreaming, entertainment shows.

The business model, which is also used by Tencent Music in domestic market, has proved its capability to generate huge profit. Although most of Tencent’s Music users are in its music streaming unit, the service’s biggest revenue contributor are social entertainment services such as Karaoke features.

As more people stick to work-from-home arrangements, Tencent saw downloads of all its app increased by 43% in February compared to the same period of last year, according to the estimation of research firm Sensor Tower.