I’ll make one more reference to Quibi, the departed digital-first short-form TV platform, to ask: Who really is watching any premium, TV content, on their mobile phones?
I
haven’t seen any specific research yet. But I’d say people are probably watching way less traditional half-hour or hour-long shows.
Let’s look at it another way.
According to a recent Statista poll, 43% of mobile users watch “videos” (no mention of length) while also watching programs on their television sets. This is multitasking of a higher order
-- watching two different pieces of video content simultaneously.
Still, while watching TV, checking/responding to emails is easily the number-one activity, chosen by 76% of respondents.
Activities ranked second through sixth: Using social media (71%); checking information about TV content being watched (68%); playing games (55%); online shopping (54%); and online banking (44%).
Back to Quibi. Its original premise of premium short-form TV/video was designed for consumers in line at a bank, in a doctor’s waiting room, or perhaps waiting for their burrito to be
rolled up at Chipotle.
In particular, Quibi’s six-minute to 10-minute long segments could pull in consumers for the higher engagement advertisers continue to seek. But maybe Quibi
should have figured out how much real investment users were willing to make over the entire length of a TV series while outside the home.
So, for example, if you watched a segment of a
Quibi series in the morning while waiting in line at a bank, would you be watching the same show later in the afternoon while awaiting your second vaccination shot?
Maybe another
10 minute segment would be too long. Not only that, but some quick, less “premium” content could be more appealing -- say that funky 45-second YouTube video of a guy trying to dunk a
basketball and falling into a pool of Jello.
Going back then, to some longer “premium” TV viewing at the supermarket? Maybe. Indeed, short-form videos do have their place.