Brief:
- Quibi, the mobile-video service started by Hollywood producer Jeffrey Katzenberg, will show ads from more than 25 brands when it launches on April 6. Bud Light, Charmin, Cheerios, Doritos, Lay's, Mountain Dew, Nature Valley, Old El Paso, Pepsi, Tide and Yoplait are among the brands that will appear from Quibi's 10 first-year sponsors, Axios reported.
- Quibi will run non-skippable ads that are six, ten or 15 seconds long before each of its episodes, which are geared for quick viewing on mobile devices. Its service won't have mid-roll ads or pods consisting of multiple ads, giving each sponsor exclusivity during each of its episodes, Axios reported.
- Quibi recommends longer ads for its shows that run five to seven minutes long, and shorter ads for shows that last one to five minutes. The service will run 2.5 minutes of ads for every hour of programming, which is comparable to social media sites but less than the 16 minutes of ads per hour for traditional TV, Axios reported.
Insight:
As the much-anticipated launch of Quibi approaches, the mobile video service's advertising strategy is taking shape with more details about how it will feature sponsors during its programming. To avoid ad clutter and enhance its value as an advertising platform, the startup limited its number of sponsors to 10 companies for the first year, although those companies will showcase dozens of brands. AB InBev, Discovery, General Mills, Google, Pepsi, Procter & Gamble, Progressive, Taco Bell, T-Mobile and Walmart are the launch sponsors for Quibi.
It's likely that many subscribers will opt for the ad-supported version of Quibi, which will charge $5 a month for a version that shows ads, over the $8 a month ad-free version. Disney's Hulu streaming service has said that 70% of its subscribers are on the ad-supported plan, giving marketers a chance to reach viewers who may have canceled their cable and satellite TV service. As the streaming video market becomes more crowded, many consumers will start to be choosier about their paid subscriptions, researcher Kantar said this month. That trend can work in Quibi's favor as consumers seek greater value by signing up for lower-cost streaming services that carry ads.
Quibi also is urging marketers to create ads for its Turnstyle format that automatically switches for vertical and horizontal viewing, Axios reported. Quibi's development of the Turnstyle technology has become a contentious legal issue, although it's one that likely won't affect advertisers. Quibi this month was accused of stealing the technology from Eko, which creates interactive videos for entertainment and advertising, The Wall Street Journal reported. Eko filed a lawsuit that alleges two Quibi employees had access to privileged information about Eko's technology when they previously worked at Snapchat. Quibi had filed a lawsuit earlier this week saying it hadn't stolen trade secrets, and said it received a patent for the Turnstyle technology, the Journal reported.
Quibi had planned to host a launch event on April 5, but this week canceled it because of concerns about the novel coronavirus and related COVID-19 illness, Variety reported. In canceling the red carpet ceremony, Quibi joins the growing ranks of companies, trade groups, performers and event organizers that have called off their live events to avoid the possibility of spreading the virus.
