It looks as though Apple iPad users love watching online video, even more than the rest of us. One study from MeFeedia suggests that the iPad is going to have a big impact on web video and how we all consume and embrace it.
Apple iPad
Apple launched its iPad tablet on April 3, and there was an immediate buying frenzy. Then again, there is with every Apple product. Apple shifted 500,000 units in the first week, and now three weeks in, the iPad is estimated to have hit the magic one million units sold milestone.
Apple is aiming the iPad squarely at people who want to consume media on the go, and video is obviously figures heavily in its plans. With a combination of streaming, rentals, and downloads, the iPad could change the way we all consume online video.
iPad Video Consumption
, a media search and discovery engine, has kept an eye on how the iPad is faring for video consumption.
After three weeks collecting data, MeFeedia claims that the iPad is now the fifth most popular mobile device for watching video on. The iPhone, iPod Touch, Symbian OS, and Android are all still ahead of it, but the iPad has now bypassed BlackBerry devices.
On average, iPad users consume three times as many online videos as a Web user, spend four times longer watching online video as a Web user, and consume five times as many online videos as an iPhone user.
iPad Video Apps
With the iPad, as with the iPhone, it’s all about the apps. Although watching video using the Web browser is fine, dedicated apps often work a lot better, being specifically developed to work with the Apple devices. Which is especially important given Apple’s aversion to Flash.
The ABC Player is already proving massively popular, and there is also already a Netflix app available. Both are available for free, although the latter obviously requires a Netflix subscription which gives access to ‘Watch Instantly’ content.
A Hulu app for the iPad is highly probable, although it may form part of the new ‘Hulu Plus‘ subscription service.
Conclusions
The Apple iPad is already a huge hit, and that’s without the 3G version even having launched in the States, and either version launching internationally.
Video consumption through the device is already strong, and looks likely only to increase. So maybe those predictions of the tablet being a strong driver of online video weren’t far off.
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