Brands set to miss out on £12.8 billion by 2017 due to poor quality video streams
Conviva has released its 2012 Viewer Experience Report, detailing the state of online video quality and how it impacts viewer behaviour to drive profitability.
The report – based on 22.6 billion worldwide video streams analysed throughout 2012 – revealed that poor quality video has had a significant effect on brand revenue – with £1.38 billion missed out on because of negative viewer experience.
Without a shift to higher quality content, brands will miss out on an additional £12.8 billion through 2017 due to poor quality video streams that directly impact viewer engagement.
In 2012, approximately 60% of all streams experienced quality degradations, including 20.6% of streams that were impacted by buffering, 19.5% of streams that were impacted by slow video start-up time and 40% of streams that were impacted by low-resolution picture due to low bitrates.
In 2011, a 1% increase in the amount of time spent buffering during VOD content led to three minutes less of viewing time. Currently, that same 1% increase leads to an eight-minute loss in viewing time – a huge increase of 166%.
Viewers watch 250% more when they have an optimal experience with fast start-up, little to no buffering and a high-sustained bitrate for high resolution and visual clarity.
“Viewers are becoming increasing less tolerant of a poor viewing experience when streaming online content,” said Darren Feher, CEO of Conviva. “Shockingly, content providers have little to no visibility into how frequently this intolerance occurs a crazy premise when you consider how deeply these viewers affect their daily economics.
“In the war for audience engagement, the companies that focus on providing exceptional content within a quality experience – one without buffering, with a quick video start time and high visual resolution will amplify viewer engagement and ultimately be the most profitable.”
According to Conviva, sites that see the highest viewer engagement have implemented key strategies into their digital media business: real-time viewer measurement, pre-emptive stream adjustment and network quality mapping
“Online video providers know that consumers have a low tolerance for problems with playback,” said Colin Dixon, founder and chief analyst of nScreenMedia. “Their problem is understanding exactly what the boundaries are. The data from Conviva lays bare how little margin for error providers have before their viewers move on.”