Video a no-go on iPods a-go-go

A new report from Nielsen Media Research finds that while video iPods are popular devices, consumers aren't exactly embracing the video aspect.

The research effort revealed that videos accounted for less than 1 percent of content items played by iPod users on their devices or through iTunes. The number climbs to a mere 2.2 percent when counting video iPod users only.

So what's the holdup? Some bloggers speculated that video may be one of those features that seem cool, while not actually being easy to use. It's hard to watch a video while exercising or commuting, for instance. And while the idea of watching a movie on a tiny screen may seem neat, in reality it can just lead to headaches and eyestrain.

Blog community response:

"Before condemning handheld or mobile video as dead, the market could use some tinkering with business models, as well as the release of more devices to see if consumers are really interested. But here's one suggestion: if your video efforts are resting on selling expensive, locked-down reformatted content, you might want to rethink things."
--TechDirt

"Portable audio is the killer app. Is been since I got my first walkman in the 80s. It is has been since the first car radio way back when. Audiobooks anyone? In our cars, in our offices, on our walks, we like to take audio with us. It is the elearning aspect that has attracted me to this since day one. It is also the probable source of Podcasting's greatest revenue stream. Video is fun portable, and helps on some plane flights,...but is just best consumed on something larger than a 2 inch screen."
--Paul Colligan's Blog

"Users want to do other things while using iPods, not devoting full attention. A few months ago, I suggested that podcasting is an ambient medium, one can consume content while performing other duties. The primary benefit of mobile devices is just that, folks are moving about."
--Web Strategy by Jeremiah