Do you remember the first time you got a smartphone with video capability? Sure-you may have thought it'd be a convenient way to shoot short videos of family vacations or crazy outings with friends. You may not have realized it at the time or given it much thought, but mobile video would go on to transform society. It's only fitting then that we highlight some of the great moments in mobile video history.
In 2003, MobiTV launched as the first mobile TV service in the U.S., gaining 500,000 subscribers by 2005. About a full decade later, Nielsen reported that 30 million consumers are watching TV on mobile. The 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa became the largest online sporting event, generating one million unique viewers for the ESPN mobile TV app, 93 million minutes of total live viewing, and 555,000 video views over the first two days. We can't forget about movies-in 2010, Netflix launched its mobile app for watching movies on the go. Now, in 2013, the service accounts for four percent of all mobile traffic.
One of the truly useful applications of mobile video is that anyone can capture major world events. When Superstorm Sandy hit the East Coast on Sunday Oct. 28, 2012, Weather.com received 40 million video views, more than the viewership of all cable news networks combined. Web traffic also outpaced TV viewership to the weather channel.
Are you heavy consumer of mobile video? Please share in the comments! To learn more, check out the full infographic produced by Qualcomm Spark.