Written by Chris Albrecht
Posted Tuesday, September 9, 2008 at 3:40 PM PT

FOX Interactive: With Mobile Video, It’s Gotta Be Live

What kinds of video are people watching on their mobile devices? According to John Smelzer, senior vice president and general manager for mobile at Fox Interactive Media, live video.

“It’s all about live,” said Smelzer during a Q&A at the Billboard Mobile Entertainment Live conference in San Francisco. Smelzer said that for FOX properties like FOX Sports, MySpace, American Idol, etc., any live video they put up, like a press conference, is watched 10 times more than a well-produced highlights package. Even programming that appears immediately after a show is broadcast, like American Idol, doesn’t perform as well as live video.

What makes this more remarkable is that there is no messaging that drives users to the live video, it’s something viewers just find on their own.

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Topic: Hitlines, Mobile

Comments (2)

hard to believe. can you post a link to an example?

William Maggos — 5:22 PM on September 9, 2008 Reply
An example of live streaming on a mobile device? Here in the States? Off-deck? Catch me at Web 2.0 next week and I’ll show you one.

drew robertson — 6:01 PM on September 9, 2008 Reply

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