More than half of global video views start on mobile - report

In emerging markets, mobile devices are increasingly becoming the go-to option for watching online streaming video.

According to Brightcove’s new Global Video Index for the second quarter, 53% of global video views begin on mobile devices, smartphones, and tablets, which are taking away share from desktop computers. Smartphones saw the highest growth, to 45% from 38% only one year ago. In emerging markets, especially Asia Pacific (APAC), mobile is king, where a whopping 84% of all plays were on mobile phones, and with Japan/Korea at 58%. In the Middle East and Africa, smartphone share was 57%. In every region but the Americas (U.S. and Canada), mobile devices took share away from desktop computers.

“Leveraging mobile video continues to be crucial for OTT providers, as they look to not only reach younger viewers – who traditionally have been mobile first – but also older viewers who have discovered that mobile video is a convenient way to consume content outside the home,” said Jim O’Neill, principal analyst at Brightcove, in a statement. “The amount of content being consumed on mobile devices has more than doubled over the past year. This is largely due to the fact that content owners and distributors are making premium content available to consumers anywhere, any time, and on any device. This growth will continue as more content – especially high-value sports content – becomes more prevalent and easily accessible on mobile devices.”

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The increasing quality of delivery to mobile devices, cheaper data plans and more affordable Android smartphones from China are the most significant factors driving increased video consumption on mobile devices.

“Mobile is no longer dominated by snackable content – instead, it provides a multi-course meal to consumers,” O’Neill said. “At the International Broadcasting Conference (IBC) earlier this month, the discussion has changed from what’s included broadly in the content mix to delivering content direct-to-consumers with more personalization and fewer limitations.”