Twenty percent of consumers across 24 countries regularly stream longer-form video on smartphone screens, according to new market research from the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB). More than one-third (36 percent) said they stream videos five minutes or longer in length on their smartphones daily or more frequently, IAB’s “Mobile Video Usage: A Global Perspective” reveals. Consumers are also using mobile devices to watch movies and full-length TV shows, IAB points out in a press release.
More broadly, IAB found that smartphone video viewing in general rose substantially year-over-year among consumers in participating countries. IAB highlights that growth was particularly strong in the U.S. (up 50 percent), as well as Canada (up 42 percent).
Smartphone Video Viewing Growth
Watching video content on smartphones and mobile devices is reducing the amount of time viewers watch traditional TV, IAB notes. “The popularity of digital video is evident across small screens the world over,” commented Anna Bager, IAB senior vice president, Mobile and Video 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?”
Apps, as opposed to mobile websites or browsers, are clearly the most commonly used means of streaming video on smartphones and mobile devices across all countries covered in IAB’s survey. Nearly half (48 percent) of respondents said they use mobile apps only or mostly to stream video on their smartphones.
Delving into the topic of mobile video search, IAB found several common means by which viewers discover digital video to view on smartphones:
- YouTube (62%)
- Social media platforms (33%)
- Search results (20%)
- Advertising (14%)
Monetization Opportunities
In addition, IAB found that advertising has more influence in the U.S. (22 percent) than it does in Canada (18 percent).
Twenty-eight percent of survey respondents said they often see ads on mobile devices they have already seen on TV. Advertisers may be missing out on an opportunity as a result, IAB says.
Over 80 percent of consumers in most markets surveyed said they were interested in ads tailored to their interests.
“Audiences around the world are overwhelmingly open to mobile video advertisements that relate to their context and viewing patterns,” commented 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.”
Furthermore, IAB’s study reveals that there’s potential to monetize mobile video through subscription and pay-on-demand models. Nearly one quarter (23%) of U.S. respondents said they were willing to pay for streaming mobile video.
