Suburban Moms Get Their Video Online
I am often asked about how quickly we believe "average users" will start to consume long-form video content (movies, etc.) online. One data point I often cite is the pace of adoption we're seeing in the UK with our customer Channel4, which reports that more than 1 million people are using the Channel4 VOD service, and more than 20 million programs have been downloaded. Last week, I got another interesting data point.
My family spent the better part of last week moving from Northern Virginia back to the Bay Area. While doing so, I spent the better part of Friday utilizing the TMobile hotspot at the local Starbucks in Pleasanton, CA. While I was firing off emails and listening in on conference calls, a group of 10 women sat down nearby. It appeared to be a book club of some sort, and the average age was probably 45. About 90 minutes into their meeting, the conversation turned to discussion of movies, and went something like this:
W1: "I just signed up to get my movies online. You don't have to wait for the DVD to come in the mail, you don't have to go to the store, etc. It's great."
W2: "How's the quality?"
W1: "Great. Same as watching a DVD."
W3: "How do you watch the video - on your DVR?"
W1: "No. I bought a simple connector cord. Our plasma has an input right on the front of the tv that says 'PC.' Connected it up and now we watch movies off our PC."
W4: "How much does it cost?"
W1: "I don't know. I think it's 10 bucks a month but I haven't really looked."
