Editing Red envelope (section)

===Virtual red envelopes===
Virtual red envelopes are available on [[mobile payment]] platforms. During the Chinese New Year holiday in 2014, the [[Messaging apps|messaging app]] [[WeChat]] introduced the ability to distribute virtual red envelopes of money to contacts and groups via its [[WeChat Pay]] platform. The launch included an on-air promotion during the [[CCTV New Year's Gala]] — China's most-watched television special — where viewers could win red envelopes as prizes.<ref name="fastco-redpacket" /><ref name=":0" />

WeChat Pay adoption increased following the launch, and over 32 billion virtual envelopes were sent over the Chinese New Year holiday in 2016 (a tenfold increase over 2015). The feature's popularity spawned imitations from other vendors; a "red envelope war" emerged between WeChat owner [[Tencent]] and its historic rival, [[Alibaba Group]], who added a similar function to its competing messaging service and held similar promotions.<ref name="fastco-redpacket">{{cite web|title=How Social Cash Made WeChat The App For Everything|url=https://www.fastcompany.com/3065255/china-wechat-tencent-red-envelopes-and-social-money|website=Fast Company|date=2 January 2017 |access-date=4 January 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170103135948/https://www.fastcompany.com/3065255/china-wechat-tencent-red-envelopes-and-social-money|archive-date=3 January 2017|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{cite news|last1=Young|first1=Doug|title=Red envelope wars in China, Xiaomi eyes US|url=http://www.scmp.com/comment/blogs/article/1715981/red-envelope-wars-china-xiaomi-eyes-us|access-date=18 February 2015|agency=[[South China Morning Post]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150218160037/http://www.scmp.com/comment/blogs/article/1715981/red-envelope-wars-china-xiaomi-eyes-us|archive-date=18 February 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> Analysts estimated that over 100 billion digital red envelopes would be sent over the New Year holiday in 2017.<ref name="bbc-virtual">{{cite news|title=Why this Chinese New Year will be a digital money fest|work=BBC News |date=27 January 2017 |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/business-38746298|access-date=29 January 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170128112533/http://www.bbc.com/news/business-38746298|archive-date=28 January 2017|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.caixinglobal.com/2017-01-13/tencent-alibaba-send-lunar-new-year-revelers-money-hunting-101043798.html|title=Tencent, Alibaba Send Lunar New Year Revelers Money-Hunting |date=13 January 2017|website=Caixin Global|language=en|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180829072212/https://www.caixinglobal.com/2017-01-13/tencent-alibaba-send-lunar-new-year-revelers-money-hunting-101043798.html|archive-date=29 August 2018|access-date=29 August 2018}}</ref> One study reported that this popularization of virtual red packets comes from their contagious feature—users who receive red packets feel obligated to follow.<ref>[https://arxiv.org/abs/1906.09698 Gift Contagion in Online Groups: Evidence From WeChat Red Packets] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201106140159/https://arxiv.org/abs/1906.09698 |date=6 November 2020 }}, Yuan et al., arXiv preprint, 2020.</ref> Since 2020, brands such as HeyTea, Tencent Video, Disney, and the Palace Museum have used custom WeChat red envelope covers to promote seasonal themes, product launches, or cultural IP. These covers often incorporate zodiac motifs, New Year greetings, or brand mascots, allowing users to share branded visuals during gift-giving, thus turning red envelopes into tools of viral marketing and cultural engagement.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Li |first=Ouyang |last2=Zhu |first2=Yonglin |date=2024 |editor-last=Stephanidis |editor-first=Constantine |editor2-last=Antona |editor2-first=Margherita |editor3-last=Ntoa |editor3-first=Stavroula |editor4-last=Salvendy |editor4-first=Gavriel |title=Study on the Cover of WeChat Red Envelope from the Perspective of brand Communication |url=https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-031-49215-0_42 |journal=HCI International 2023 – Late Breaking Posters |language=en |location=Cham |publisher=Springer Nature Switzerland |pages=357–364 |doi=10.1007/978-3-031-49215-0_42 |isbn=978-3-031-49215-0}}</ref>