When asked to rank the importance of various attributes of mobile video apps, a leading 63% of consumers rated free or low subscription rates as very important, according to a study released in August 2011 by the Cable & Telecommunications Association for Marketing (CTAM) and The Nielsen Company. Another 23% rated free/low subscription rates as somewhat important, meaning a combined 86% of consumers find cost important.
In fact, as long as consumers can get the video app for free or at a low cost, more than half (56%) of respondents said they don’t mind mobile advertisements on video apps, especially if it allows them to access content for free.
Genre, Interface, Content Also Important
The next two most popular attributes, video genre available (47%) and user-friendly interface (43%) had similar rates of consumers rating them very important. However, factoring in the 38% who rated user-friendly interface somewhat important and 33% who rated video genre available somewhat important, slightly more consumers find user-friendly interface at least somewhat important (81%) than do video genre available (80%).
Availability of new video content to watch was also rated at least somewhat important by a combined 80% of respondents, with a slightly lower percentage rating it very important (42%). Somewhat surprisingly, only 17% rated social interaction features very important and 25% somewhat important.
In addition, 65% of video app users surveyed said that word-of-mouth plays an important role in deciding which video apps to use.
Video App Users Engage with TV
The study also showed that video app usage increases consumer engagement with TV programs, networks and related websites. Roughly 85% of video app users surveyed said they watch the same amount or more of regularly scheduled TV since they began using video apps, and nearly half (46%) reported being more engaged with the programs or networks associated with the video apps after accessing them.
In addition, 35% report that video app usage causes them to visit the network or program website associated with the video app more than they had before they started using the app.
‘Sync-to-App’ Increases TV Attention
Nielsen and CTAM also conducted a qualitative study of “sync-to-TV” apps which found these apps increase consumers’ engagement with television programming rather than distracting from it. Sync-to-TV refers to a second screen app on a tablet device that recognizes audio codes embedded in a program as it is broadcast through a TV set, and launches interactive and social networking features on the device that correspond with the programming on the TV screen.
Study participants reported that the sync-to-TV experience made them more likely to pay heightened attention to the program, thus increasing their engagement with the program and advertising, and keeping them tuned in longer.
Mobile Video Popular with Females
Although mobile devices are often seen as gadgets preferred by males, females and males 2 and up spend the same average monthly time viewing video via mobile device (four hours and 20 minutes), according to other data collected by The Nielsen Company in Q2 2011. In addition, females 50 and up spend significantly more time per month viewing video via mobile device (three hours and 37 minutes) than men 50 and up (two hours and 10 minutes).
While in all age categories, males watch more video online than on mobile device, mobile video viewing time surpasses online video viewing time among females 2 and up and 50 and up.
