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News Cycle Sent Video Views, Ads Flying High

In 2016, online video was driven by news, news, and more news. With a presidential election as well as the Olympics fueling demand, consumers gobbled up online video, according to a new report from FreeWheel.

The online tech firm found that video views in the third quarter grew by 37% over the prior year, while ad views rose 28%. The growth was driven by increased viewing of short-form content in the third quarter, due to the big news events. Indeed, sports views rose 76% and news by 45%.

Live ad views went along for the ride, jumping 145% due to the election. That figure, understandably, should grow even more once the fourth quarter numbers comes in, FreeWheel said. Keep an eye on whether this boon in live viewing translates into more overall willingness to view either live videos, or online video in general.
                
About 54% of the ads in the third quarter were served up in a combination of short-form and live video. That said, long-form still fuels ads, with a 41% share of ad views. Also, even as short clip consumption boomed, consumers still tuned into longer-form videos to the tune of 18% year over year growth.
                       
With all this growth in consumption comes more ways to buy the ads. Programmatic buying rose 92% year over year, though it still only accounts for 7.3% of ad views, FreeWheel said.

An interesting trend to watch is authentication. Rates rose in the third quarter thanks to the Olympics, but the question remains whether it will continue, or if it was solely due to the sporting event.

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