"My iPod is my Pacifier": An Investigation on the Everyday Practices of Mobile Video Consumption

Abstract

New mobile digital video technologies are creating dramatic shifts in the ways that video-based content can be produced, consumed, and delivered. One such shift has been the emergence of mobile video devices like video-enabled iPods and mobile phones. In the same way that the Walkman revolutionized music consumption behaviors, these mobile video devices are changing how, when, and where people are interacting with video. Another revolutionary shift comes from video content web sites like YouTube and Google Video which publish vast quantities of video content viewable on mobile devices. Such technology revolutions change the way users behave and change their expectations in regards to their mobile video experiences. To help understand these changing behaviors, we conducted a three week study of mobile video users in the US and in the UK. In this paper, we highlight some noteworthy observations from this study.