Online Video Views Getting Gamed
ComScore reports that in August, U.S. audiences viewed 25.3 billion online videos. But Jim Louderbeck, CEO of original online video production house Revision 3, says online video viewing statistics are being gamed.
In an editorial today in Silicon Alley Insider, Louderbeck says most video sites count any “video start” as a view, even if a video is stopped immediately, clicked on accidentally or set to auto-play on the site. Louderbeck quotes data from analytics firm TubeMogul showing that more than half of a video’s viewers abandon the video before the 1-minute mark.
I’ve thought that viewing statistics were a little outlandish for some time, and the first data I saw to support this came from Nielsen this summer. But while the top-line number of views may be artificially inflated, I still think online video has tremendous potential for marketers who wish to convey their brand message in an engaging, cost-effective manner. Even if the number of views is halved, the reach of video is impressive.
The amount of time U.S. audiences watch online videos continues to grow, and the studies Louderbeck cites do not take into account long-form video content such as Hulu’s programming, which is quickly growing in popularity and garnering the majority of online video ad dollars.
I do think he has excellent points about more consequential metrics about online video, though, because if advertisers think the system is being gamed, they’ll be reluctant to experiment in the medium. More than ever, clear standards that truly reflect the audience’s engagement with online video need to be established. Accurate measurement is the first step toward quantifying the benefits of online video marketing.
- Pete
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