Content consumption on internet shows a distinct shift. As we are aware, in busy life, there are shorter attention spans. Therefore, consumers prefer content that is quick, short and snackable. Longer formats are not preferred. Besides, the content is curated by AI/ML. The users thus find it exciting to view it.
Short-form videos are between 15-seconds and 2 minutes, as compared to long-form videos (LFVs) which are more than 2 minutes long.
Videos can be made by users or professional creators. They could be pre-recorded or livestreamed.
In this space, we find a mix of social media and entertainment companies as well as local specialist platforms.
The video market has exploded of late. There are 640 million internet users and 550 million smart phone users. They spend 1.3 trillion hours online in India. Smart phone users too spend 4.8 hours on their devices, out of which an hour on an average is spent on consuming videos.
India’s exploding video market was first tapped by TikTok (known in China as Douyin). It had 200 million users and 20 million content creators posting at least one video on the platform. There were 2 billion mobile downloads of TikTok. (2020).
India banned the Chinese apps. Therefore, Indian apps tried to fill this space. One such app was Moj that was launched in 2020. It gave an opportunity to creators to showcase their talent and creativity. It was distributed through Google Playstore. To build the app, ShareChat provided lot of insights. A team of 70 engineers and product experts worked to build Moj. Moj has emerged as number one short video app with highest monthly active users.
Simultaneously, another video app MX TakaTak was launched in July 2020 by MX Media. These two companies — ShareChat and Mx Media, are merging to create the largest short video platform for Indians. These two platforms will now be controlled by ShareChat.
Josh too emerged as another indigenous video platform in 2020. It caters to both the urban and rural audiences.
Moj too is building live streaming capabilities. It will facilitate the monetisation for the creators. Chingari is another short video app from India. It has collaborated with multiple platforms for entertainment and engagement.
Short videos go viral. They garner million of followers. This follower base is monetised. There are brand collaborations here. There are opportunities for commerce.
Kid Clips appears on Netflix’s iOS app. It will show short videos from the existing library of children’s movies and programmes.
Kids clips will compete with TikTok, YouTube Shorts and Instagram Reels.