New study reveals long form’s where it’s at when it comes to mobile video

Anyone who’s watched the space over the past few years knows that mobile video is big and only getting bigger. Until now though, the prevailing logic has been the kind of content that does well on mobile is short and aimed at people on the go. While that may have once been true, a new study shows that we’re increasingly happy streaming longer-form content.

According to the study, conducted by the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), more than a third of the people surveyed watch videos that are five-minutes or longer on their phones daily or more frequently.

Unsurprisingly the people most likely to watch longer-form video on their mobile devices largely come from countries with well-developed internet infrastructures. According to the IAB, smartphone video viewers in Turkey, Finland, China, Russia and Singapore are particularly frequent viewers of such videos.

People are also increasingly likely to watch movies and full-length television shows on their mobile devices, with Chinese viewers being the most inclined to watch both films and TV shows being the most likely to do so.

In every single one of the countries surveyed, substantial numbers of video viewers report their video consumption on smartphones has increased year-on-year. The most prominent upticks have been seen in the US (50%), Canada (42%), New Zealand (42%), South Africa (42%), and the UK (40%). This trend is also impacting traditional television viewing across the board, with consumers in China (37%) and Singapore (35%) reporting the highest incidence of watching less TV due to streaming more on mobile.

When mobile video viewers do watch traditional television, however, 22% are regularly doing so while watching video simultaneously on their phone. This video dual-screening tendency is evident across all markets measured, with the exception of Japan.

“The popularity of digital video is evident across small screens the world over,” said Anna Bager, Senior Vice President Mobile and Video, IAB, and General Manager of the IAB Digital Video and Mobile Marketing Centers of Excellence. “The fact that people are not only watching short snippets of programming, but committing to longer form content on their phones, opens doors for brands to be part of this impressive mobile engagement. However, the finding that viewers around the world are now video dual screening while watching TV, points to an emerging challenge for marketers: How do you grab a viewer’s attention when it’s divided between two simultaneous video feeds?”

Given that YouTube is the world’s second-largest search engine, it should hardly be surprising that YouTube is the second most-common method of discovery for mobile video watchers, followed by social media platforms and search results.

Just 14% of people globally reported watching a mobile video because of an advert. Interestingly, ads have more influence in the US (22%) and Canada (18%).

Apps are where it’s at

Another finding which isn’t all that surprising is that apps are indisputably the main method for viewing mobile video in each of the markets studied. Nearly half of respondents overall (48%) said that they “only” or “mostly” leverage mobile apps to stream video on their phones, with the UK (63%), Brazil (60%), and Turkey (58%) leading the trend. By contrast, across the survey sample only 18% said they “only” or “mostly” use mobile websites to view video.

That goes a long way to explaining why mobile adspend is set to top US$105-billion by 2019.

More than a quarter (28%) of viewers across the participating countries said that they often see ads on mobile video that they’ve already seen on TV. Numbers climb higher in France (38%), Turkey (36%), Finland (35%) and the US (35%). But, marketers might be missing out with this approach – since 80+ percent or more of consumers in most markets expressed interest in any kind of tailored ad versus “I prefer no tailoring of ads at all.” The findings point to the importance of ads being relevant to the content of the video being watched, but also show viewing history being a significant factor, especially in the U.S. and Canada.

“Audiences around the world are overwhelmingly open to mobile video advertisements that relate to their context and viewing patterns,” said Joe Laszlo, Senior Director, IAB Mobile Marketing Center of Excellence. “Clearly, this is a real boon to global marketers that want to ensure they reach the audience segments most likely to be interested in their products or services.”

In addition to advertising, the study shows that there is potential for mobile video monetisation through subscription and pay-on-demand models. In several markets viewers already demonstrate a willingness to pay for video content that is streamed to phones:

• China (33%)
• UK (25%)
• Canada (23%)
• US (23%)
• Australia (21%)

The IAB does however admit that there are still barriers to overcome for further success in pay-for models – and much need to grow mobile video advertising revenue. Seventy-eight percent of respondents overall stated that they would rather have free mobile video supported by ads.

The survey saw consumers from 24 countries answer 20 questions. Two hundred consumers, who were 16+, owned a smartphone and watched either short or long mobile videos, were polled in each of the markets. All respondents were asked the same questions — frequency of watching, genres of mobile video watched, where they watch mobile videos, when they watch them, how they watch mobile video, do they share mobile video and whether they see any ads while watching mobile video.