Does Social Media Harm Streaming Services? The Answer Might Surprise You…
By Movieguide® Contributor
While conventional wisdom would argue clips of movies and TV shows on social media would harm streamers, research shows these snippets actually help funnel more people onto these platforms.
“I think the first instinct was, ‘Oh my God, is our lunch being eaten by these new platforms? Is this an existential threat to the TV and movie business?’” Warner Bros.’s research chief Natasha Hritzuk told Variety’s “Strictly Business” podcast. “And on the surface, it definitely looked like it could be. But I thought, ‘This is simplistic to assume that this is a bad thing until we dig a little bit deeper.’”
However, Hritzuk’s team found an encouraging result when they performed their research. Rather than pulling viewers away from the TV shows, these roughly 30-second clips piqued their attention, prompting them to search out the full show or movie. Even better, these clips serve as free advertising that can reach audiences way better than traditional ads.
“When consumers see a clip, a trailer, a compilation, even fan-generated content, that becomes a powerful signal, a powerful discovery tool, especially for younger generations, that then encourages them to go on and watch the content,” Hritzuk explained. “So I would go so far as to argue that short-form video is a critical media platform for studios who want to promote their content to younger generations.”
Part of the reason these clips find so much success is because of their short length. Rather than committing significant amounts of time to watch a show or movie, consumers are much happier watching 30-second clips, even if the total time spent watching content is the same.
“Nearly 50% of users surveyed by TikTok said that videos longer than a minute long were ‘stressful.’” The Oxford Blue reported in 2023.
Thus, streamers like Max benefit when their content is available in a clipped format on social media, with some companies going as far as to post the clips themselves.
READ MORE: HOW TIKTOK HOOKS USERS WITH SHORT SHOW AND MOVIE CLIPS
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