'Community commerce' takes root

Transaction value has become secondary for video bloggers and news feeds as "community commerce" took center stage during this year's annual shopping extravaganza on the Taobao platform.

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd regards mom-and-pop merchants as the best fit to foster personal ties among online buyers, pushing the e-commerce giant toward its long-held yet unmet goal for social media and entertainment.

In the lead-up to and during the Dec 12 sales gala, more than 5,000 live streams were broadcast daily on Taobao, attracting more than 10 million viewers on topics from fashion trends to cooking tips, according to company data.