Nielsen: Mobile video usage still niche, but rises

Posted by Erina Lin on January 9, 2009 at 8:02 PM

Mobile video still reached only very few people in the U.S., but the numbers are in a rise, according to a new report issued by Nielsen, Media Week reported.

According to the study, only 10.3 million, or 5 percent of U.S. mobile subscribers access video content on their phones in a given month. However, the numbers increase 14 percent from 2007, mostly thanks to more Internet-friendly phones available in the market.

About two-thirds of mobile Web video viewers are viewing via the mobile Internet. Paid subscription services and purchased downloads still account for sizable share, Media Week reported.

iPhone users are aggressive regarding mobile video. More than one out of three iPhone users watch video on their devices on a regular basis, according to Nielsen. During Q3 of 2008, only 11 percent of all mobile video viewers did so using an iPhone.

Not surprisingly, YouTube topped as the most popular mobile Web video destination. According to Nielsen, about three million unique users accessed YouTube via their mobile devices in the third quarter of 2008, Media Week reported.