Baidu raises $1.53bn for video streaming site

Chinese internet-search leader Baidu said Tuesday it has raised $1.53 billion from a clutch of private-equity investors to fund the growth of its video-streaming site iQiyi.com, as competition ramps up with rival offerings from Tencent Holdings and Alibaba Group Holding’s Youku Tudou. According to The Wall Street Journal, investors in the convertible note issued by iQiyi included Hillhouse Capital Group, Boyu Capital, and Sequoia Capital China, Baidu said. Video streaming has become a big business in China as the country’s top internet companies try to attract more viewers with content from at home and abroad. Live streaming has seen rapid revenue growth in Asia, particularly in China, where it is forecast to become a $5 billion market by the end of 2017, according to data-analytics firm App Annie.