Quibi Picked the Worst Time to Launch a Streaming Service for Short Attention Spans - Or maybe the best? (archive)
For months, Quibi, the phone-based streaming service that launched Monday, has been getting roasted by the small group of people whose professions require them to know about the existence of Quibi. The gist of the jokes has been that Quibi sounds like a 30 Rock fiction come to life. The brainchild of billionaire boomers Jeffrey Katzenberg and Meg Whitman, it's predicated on the idea that no one can pay attention any more, so if anything is going to lure the scattered, cellphone-obsessed youth away from the free and varied YouTube content with which they seem generally satisfied, it's high production values that you can't really see on a cellphone and the imprimatur of celebrities grandparents have heard of. Quibi has gone on a buying spree for every famous person in Hollywood's leftover ideas, which have been turned into "quick bites" of six to 10 minutes apiece. The company has already raised $1.75 billion dollars, on the strength of that idea and a slate that includes a reality show called Murder House Flip.
As someone who has not been above a Quibi joke herself, I am disappointed to report that Quibi is neither a glorious embarrassment nor a surprising triumph. It is, instead, expensively competent. The dozens of star-studded series it debuts with are, in general, solid and professional, and tend toward uplifting but brief documentaries I could totally imagine spacing out to in a waiting room. (The fact that almost no one on the planet Earth is spacing out in a waiting room right now is another Quibi punchline.) The implicit assumption of Quibi is that no one has any time anymore, even, say, for a 22-minute sitcom. And yet it is arriving at a moment when a majority of Americans have more time than they had weeks ago—if also, perhaps, even more shredded attention spans.
Quibi review – shortform sub-Netflix shows aren't long for this world
The problem is that for an initial line-up, there's nothing particularly buzzworthy. The ones that almost work (Funny or Die's Flipped coasts on the comic appeal of the stars Kaitlin Olson and Will Forte while Murder House Flip stands out because of its barmy premise: a home makeover show for a house where a spate of killings took place) don't work enough to demand a subscription. The 90-day free trial will surely attract some curiosity but unless there's a steep uptick in quality, most will probably drop out before paying.
In short, as Quibi seems to prefer it, the majority of its initial lineup consists of shows we don't need right now on a platform we don't really want. It's an idea born in an LA conference room that will probably die in the real world, content for content's sake, teasing something bigger and better that doesn't seem to come. We might all have more time than ever right now but there still isn't enough time for Quibi.
Quibi's Mobile-Only Viewing Is Already Frustrating Some People (archive)
A few hours into Quibi's much-hyped debut, people have expressed irritation over something that's supposed to be one of the streamer's key differentiating features: You can only watch its lineup of original movies and shows on a mobile device.
Can't you just screencast (or screen mirror) a smartphone to a TV?
Also at AndroidPolice.
Related: Fox Could Buy Tubi While NBCUniversal Eyes Vudu
Related Stories
Arthur T Knackerbracket has found the following story:
Fox is reportedly eyeing Tubi. [Editor's Note: Tubi is a streaming service.]
Tubi is available in the US, Canada and Australia on Android and iOS, as well as on devices such as Amazon Echo Show, Google Nest Hub Max, Roku and Apple TV. Content is also viewable at www.tubi.tv. The company plans to launch in more areas including the UK and Mexico in the coming year.
[...] As more streaming services such as Disney Plus and Apple TV Plus launch to compete with the likes of Netflix, several companies are also looking to free, ad-supported platforms aimed at customers who might not be willing to dish out more money for an ever-growing list of paid offerings.
Last year, it was reported that Walmart could be thinking of selling Vudu, a service that lets customers rent or purchase individual shows or movies. Vudu also launched a free, ad-supported service in 2016.
Walmart reportedly purchased Vudu for around $100 million in 2010, and says the service is installed on more than 100 million devices in the US. It's not clear if there will be a deal between NBCUniversal and Vudu, people familiar with the matter told The Journal. A Walmart representative declined to comment, but said the company is "constantly having conversations with partners."
From The Guardian:
Nearly three months ago, in early April, the $1.75bn content experiment known as Quibi lurched from its rocky, much-maligned promotional campaign into full-scale launch. The service offered a tsunami of celebrity-fronted shows segmented into "quick bites" (hence, "qui-bi") of 10 minutes or less – a Joe Jonas talk show, a documentary on LeBron James's I Promise school, a movie with Game of Thrones's Sophie Turner surviving a plane crash, all straight to your phone. At the time, many of us wondered if Quibi could deliver on its central promise – to refashion the style of streaming into "snackable" bites – or if, teetering under the weight of its massive funding and true who's who of talent as the world shut down, it would become shorthand for an expensive mistake.
The service, the brainchild of the DreamWorks Animation cofounder Jeffrey Katzenberg and the former Hewlett-Packard CEO Meg Whitman – two billionaires deeply entrenched in Hollywood and Silicon Valley establishment – was "either going to be a huge home run or a massive swing and a miss," Michael Goodman, a media analyst with Strategy Analytics, told the Guardian. Given a string of bad news since its 6 April launch – missed targets, executive departures, Katzenberg singularly blaming the pandemic – and the sunset of its 90-day free trial with millions fewer subscribers than anticipated, the scales seemed decidedly tipped toward swing and miss. But while it's too soon to declare the end of Quibi, it's still worth asking: is the promise of the quick bite already over? And what went so wrong?
Previously: Meg Whitman-Run Streaming Service "Quibi" Launches, Reception Mixed
Related: Fox Could Buy Tubi While NBCUniversal Eyes Vudu
Plagued with growth issues, Quibi, a short-form mobile-native video platform, is shutting down, according to multiple reports. The startup, co-founded by Jeffrey Katzenberg and Meg Whitman, had raised nearly $2 billion in its lifetime as a private company. Quibi did not respond to requests for comment from TechCrunch.
The company's prolific fundraising efforts spanned prominent institutions in private equity, venture capital and Hollywood, all betting on Katzenberg's ability to deliver another hit. The startup's backers included Alibaba, Madrone Capital Partners, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan, as well as Disney, Sony Pictures, Viacom, WarnerMedia and MGM, among others. The Information reports that Quibi will have $350 million left to return to shareholders.
Their pitch was highly produced bite-sized content, packed with Hollywood star power, and designed to be "mobile-first" entertainment. For the YouTubes and Snaps of the world, producing mainstream content on a shoestring budget, Quibi wanted to be an HBO for smartphones. Investors and pundits questioned the firm's ability to monetize this vision, and it became clear soon after launch that the company had miscalculated.
[...] Admitting that the launch hadn't gone as planned, Katzenberg blamed the coronavirus for the streaming app's challenges.
One problem with finding a buyer: Quibi doesn't even own most of its original "content":
Actually, Quibi doesn't own any of the big-budget premium content for which it has shelled out upwards of $100,000 per minute. The company has seven-year licenses on its short-form series; after two years, content owners have the right to assemble the shows and distribute them elsewhere.
Also at The Verge, Business Insider, Ars Technica, and MarketWatch.
Previously: Meg Whitman-Run Streaming Service "Quibi" Launches, Reception Mixed
The Fall of Quibi: How Did a Starry $1.75bn Netflix Rival Crash So Fast?
Related: Fox Could Buy Tubi While NBCUniversal Eyes Vudu
Roku In Talks To Acquire Rights To Quibi's Library – Report
According to the Wall Street Journal, Roku is nearing a deal to buy the content catalog of Quibi, the short-form mobile streaming platform launched by Jeffrey Katzenberg and Meg Whitman that launched in April 2020 before shuttering in December.
The WSJ reports that Roku would acquire the rights to Quibi's content but the specific details and financial terms of the proposed deal haven't been revealed and the deal could still fall through.
Also at The Verge and The Wrap:
Quibi's deals with its content producers were atypical of other platforms, in that the creators owned their stuff. Quibi's deals allowed for the service to feature those shows on its service for seven years. The WSJ, citing people familiar with the discussions, added that some of the contracts stipulate that the content cannot air on other platforms. However, an individual familiar with Roku's stance argued that it would not prevent Roku from being able to stream the content, the report added.
Roku content includes series like Anna Kendrick's "Dummy," "Most Dangerous Game" starring Liam Hemsworth and Christoph Waltz, as well as Antoine Fuqua's "#FreeRayshawn," which scored a pair of Emmy wins.
Maybe Quibi's carcass will spawn an entertaining short-form lawsuit.
Previously: Meg Whitman-Run Streaming Service "Quibi" Launches, Reception Mixed
The Fall of Quibi: How Did a Starry $1.75bn Netflix Rival Crash So Fast?
Founder Jeffrey Katzenberg and CEO Meg Whitman Announce Impending Death of "Quibi" Streaming Service
Related: Roku Media Player Maker Seeking IPO
(Score: 2) by progo on Tuesday April 07 2020, @07:46PM (2 children)
How do you compete with people that produce 6 to 10 minute videos that people like and share, and only require tens of dollars in compensation per video?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday April 07 2020, @08:06PM
You use the bored and restless celebrities who are trapped in their mansions to make glorified vlog content for the plebs.
(Score: 2) by julian on Wednesday April 08 2020, @04:10AM
Well for my money no competing service has been able to beat Bittorrent.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday April 07 2020, @08:11PM (3 children)
This is the woman who ran against Jerry Brown for governor when California was experiencing a fiscal crisis. She out-spent Brown by a wide margin, and I voted for Brown almost on that basis alone--she spent like a drunken sailor. Brown managed his more limited campaign funds by staging an ad push closer to election day. In a state experiencing fiscal issues, that's exactly what you need! LOL, I'm not sure if she had any chance of winning; but the whole myth of fiscally conservative Republicans was perfectly illustrated by her campaign.
I think she had one great company that she rode up. She had enough skill to do that, but it was mostly luck that got her on that one rocket ride.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday April 07 2020, @08:42PM (2 children)
Quibi sounds like a failure all on its own. Throw Meg Whitman in there? Epic failure.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by edIII on Tuesday April 07 2020, @09:58PM (1 child)
They're going to fail most likely. Youtube works for one reason, and that's Google bought it. That allowed them growth, and then the advertising allowed an actual profit (I think). In any case, it's far more about data mining and advertising than it is about the content. Nonetheless, content flocks to Youtube like flies on shit. I've even found reason to watch it because of all the podcasts and actual television shows on it. It seems lately that the thought is to work with Youtube and the advertising dollars instead of playing DMCA whack-a-mole. So Youtube content is increasing rather impressively in both count and quality with a lot of official channels and HD content. All for FREE.
Other than Netflix, there isn't a real competitor in the subscription arena. Not really, and platforms that require a cable subscription don't count. Amazon Prime is the only real competitor in terms of content and pricing, and again, it has Amazon backing it. Both of them have high quality programming that keeps attracting viewership.
Blockbuster bit the dust, I'm not seeing a whole lot of Hulu success either. Only other platform I even know of is Vimeo, and I rarely come across a video on it.
Quibi wants $4.99 for the privilege of their premium content with ads? $7.99 without? They're on fucking crack. Only way they're going to pull that off is absolute epic content, of which I'm dubious of in such a short form. All of this hinges on the premise that the target demographic is so scatterbrained and unable to concentrate, that they'll choose Quibi for short and stupid videos versus Youtube which is free. Does it have a comments section too? Maybe they can hope for a real good troll infestation or something.
I'm going to enjoy watching this either way. Mega rich boomers plunging billions into reaching the youngest generation (whatever letter or symbol assigned to it). It's like financial Nascar, we come for the crashes :)
Technically, lunchtime is at any moment. It's just a wave function.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by takyon on Tuesday April 07 2020, @11:30PM
Quibi is only one player in the Streaming Wars. Billions of dollars are being thrown around to create services that will almost certainly die a horrible death (including mergers at a fraction of previous valuations). Netflix will be around in 10 years, but Tubi? Vudu?
Some other players: Apple TV+, Disney+, AT&T TV, HBO Now, CBS All Access... Peacock [wikipedia.org].
The fragmentation helps "pirate" services flourish since many people don't want to drop cable only to pay for 5 streaming platform subscriptions. Which leads into the next story [soylentnews.org].
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 2) by FatPhil on Tuesday April 07 2020, @09:49PM
Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people; the smallest discuss themselves