Mobile video: Advertising’s emerging killer app

June 25, 2008

Dave Sloan is director of product marketing at Avot Media

By Dave Sloan

Do content owners consider mobile strategic or just another screen where a few incremental impressions can be picked up? With mobile penetration in the United States at 84 percent, it’s time to consider mobile as a strategic measure.

Mobile marketers are looking to spruce up SMS campaigns by adding valuable video content. There’s nothing like video to communicate a brand message.

But before launching a mobile video campaign, mobile marketers need to answer three questions to ensure a mobile video campaign is strategic to their goals and that it will lead to a healthy ROI.

First, does a critical mass of their end users have video-ready phones and data plans? Second, is mobile video smooth and clear enough to be worthy of a great brand impression? Finally, do their end users want mobile video?

In 2007, mobile video was just a blip on the radar. According to Nielsen Mobile, only 2 percent of U.S. subscribers watched mobile video in the fourth quarter of 2007.

Why was mobile video so poorly adopted? The high cost is the main reason. Most users don’t want to be charged for premium mobile content. 

In addition to cost, complexity, poor image quality and slow download times are also on the list of user complaints. Pick up a standard feature phone, open the Web browser and try to find a mobile video. It is indeed a terrible experience.

So what’s so different about 2008?

Yes, the iPhone has changed the landscape, but not everyone has an iPhone. IPhone statistics from its first year in the market are off the charts: 90 percent of iPhone users browse the Web. But a large-scale mobile video campaign needs to reach the majority of users, not just iPhone users.

Some devices block video streaming, have slow network rates and limit file downloads to 1MB. Each carrier has its own policy on allowing streaming video on their networks. Some carriers charge users for premium video content and, as a result, they block free Internet videos.  

Combine a handful of device limitations and carrier issues across all the 400-odd devices and five major carriers in the U.S. and you can see that the overall landscape is fragmented, non-standardized and confusing.  

You can overcome the complexity by enlisting a mobile video delivery specialist that focuses on delivering video to all mobile devices under all network conditions.

Certainly, carriers are beginning to embrace video and foresee streaming video as a way to deliver value and showcase their data network.  

AT&T CEO Ralph de la Vega cites streaming video as an example of a killer app on faster broadband wireless networks.

As mobile video gains traction, carriers will mandate that all handset manufacturers enable streaming video, putting pressure on the likes of BlackBerry maker Research In Motion and Microsoft to improve their current limited video capabilities. 

There’s good news for content owners, regardless of the device being used. Thanks to new mobile video delivery engines, users can quickly discover and watch a smooth video on any device over any network.  

New transcoding and mobile streaming technologies allow the video to start right up and eliminate awkward freezing, buffering, and skipping.

Video is simple, powerful and it can reach millions of users, increasing brand awareness and brand loyalty. Advertisers are starting to realize that their target customers are carrying a multimedia device ready to play branded video or advertisements.

The 2008 statistics are mind boggling:  As many as 85 percent of mobile devices are video-enabled (M:Metrics 2008), 3G penetration is already at 30 percent in the U.S., with Verizon Wireless leading the pack at 56 percent penetration. Furthermore, as many as 72 percent of mobile users have a data plan.

Users already understand the concept of “send BMW to 95495 for a video!” Advertisers simply need to expose these campaigns to their users and watch the masses pull down millions of brand impressions via mobile videos.

Users want video content that is relevant to them, easily discoverable and high quality. Take American Idol SMS voting, for example. Users would flock to incentives like “to see Brooke White’s performance on your phone, click this link.”

It’s too early to tell what the uptake of a campaign like this would be.  But as mobile video becomes a reality, marketers will have the ability to provide a richer visual experience for millions of consumers.

David Sloan is director of product marketing at mobile video services specialist Avot Media, Sunnyvale, CA. Reach him at .

Comments on "Mobile video: Advertising’s emerging killer app"

1. Milan Petrovic says:

   June 26, 2008 at 4:37am

   Extremly slow application. Videos hangs very often
   vTap is far better in playing videos