The VeryCD app for iPhone. Click to enlarge.
VeryCD has launched an iPhone app over the weekend, completing the site’s turnaround from a notorious pirate’s BBS, to one of China’s biggest music and movie aggregator sites. There’s an Android version in the works as well.
The app, like the website, catalogs licensed TV shows, cartoons, documentaries and movies – including hits from the US, Korea, and China – that are linked from China’s chief video-streaming sites, such as Youku (NYSE:YOKU), Tudou (NASDAQ:TUDO), PPTV, and Baidu’s (NASDAQ:BIDU) recently-renamed iQiyi.
So although the VeryCD app doesn’t have the polish of some of those separate apps – or some of their unique features, such as Youku’s HTPC remote control in its own smartphone app – it’s a very useful portal that aggregates some of the best content that can be streamed in mainland China.
Recently we looked at how it has been – and still is – a rough transition to being a legitimate and legal service for VeryCD, shrugging off its origins as China’s Napster. That change only happened earlier this year, after a brief shutdown of the site by authorities.
Grab the VeryCD app from the iTunes Store – but note that most content will likely be geo-restricted to those who’re in mainland China.