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IPad owners consume 40pc of mobile videos: Rhythm NewMedia

Mobile ad network Rhythm NewMedia's second-quarter insights reveal that both consumers and brands have a healthy appetite for mobile video.

In-stream video ads ? which appear as a commercial break in full episodes or before video clips ? are more effective than online, Rhythm claims. Mobile in-stream units are seeing an 87 percent completion rate on average, compared to a 69-81 percent average for online, the report found.

?Mobile video is skyrocketing,? said Lisa Abramson, director of marketing at Rhythm NewMedia, Mountain View, CA. ?The flood gates have really opened in terms of our media partners bringing videos into their mobile mix. 

?As a result, we are seeing a ton of growth in the completion rates for mobile video ads,? she said.

Rhythm NewMedia is a mobile ad network that has served ads on behalf of brands such as P&G, GM, Verizon, HBO, Marriott, Kraft and Disney. Its media partners include brands such as CBS, ABC, NBC Universal, Fox, Sony Crackle, Warner Bros., Discovery, Viacom and AP.

Because of the on-the-go nature of mobile phones and tablets, Rhythm thought that short-form content would always be most popular.

The company was surprised to see that the consumption of full episodes on mobile is increasing. This can most likely be attributed to the fact that 50 percent of videos are being viewed over Wi-Fi networks.

People are watching at their local Starbucks and even right at home.

According to the company, premium full episode viewing is up 200 percent in the second quarter compared to the first quarter of 2011.

IPads make up only 20 percent of the mobile video consuming user base, but iPad owners consume 40 percent of videos.

With the increase in mobile video consumption numbers, advertisers are seeing tremendous opportunities with a number of different ad units.

Interestingly, tap-to-social media has the highest click-through rate for full-page ads.

 ?We are seeing a huge increase of consumers watching videos,? Ms. Abramson said. ?People are viewing ads and are willing to do so in exchange for free content.

?The reason for the increase is a combination of more iPads, more tablets and more content,? she said. ?Our media partners are finding they can effectively monetize their content.

?Consumers are watching more because there is more content available.?