iOS still four fifths of mobile video

A new study (PDF) from video monetizer FreeWheel has suggested that Apple devices may dominate mobile video viewing by a wide margin. Tracking across its five billion-plus video ads, it found that almost 80 percent of mobile video watching took place on an iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch, leaving Android 20 percent. The iPhone and iPod were joint leaders at 30 percent where the year-old iPad still matched the entire Android platform.

Every other platform accounted for less than one percent.

The ad provider accounted for the wide gap both because of the total user base, which would still be larger for Apple than Google's collected users, but also because of the motives for developers. Content had been optimized for iOS first and then ported to Android as a "later priority." iPads were thriving even with just 20 million in users' hands as they were considered video viewers by many owners.

FreeWheel's figures aren't a complete mirror of viewing habits as they don't include video from outside ad providers or those with none at all. Such a large sample still suggests it might be representative and could be disappointing for both Android partners and Adobe. Both have regularly made it a point to include Flash and have tried to use it as a marketing angle to undermine the iPad and iPhone. With an increasing amount of mobile video either played directly through a native app or embedded in HTML5, though, YouTube and many mobile websites don't necessarily depend on Flash.

Mobile viewing was also on the rise in recent months and, during March, saw massive spikes in the aftermath of the Japanese Tohoku-area earthquake as well as during NCAA March Madness games. [via GigaOM]

By Electronista Staff

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iPod, iPhone, digital imaging, Google, Android, Adobe, Flash, mobile phones, Apple, iPad, FreeWheel