• by Daisy Whitney , Op-Ed Contributor, May 31, 2012

Everything we thought we knew about mobile video habits -- consumers will only watch mobile video on the go, and they’ll only watch short videos -- is turning out to be wrong.

About half of all videos viewed on mobile phones are watched in the home, according to a just-released study that online video technology firm Tremor Video conducted in partnership with Frank N. Magid Associates. What’s more, smartphone video consumption peaks during prime time, meaning that the TV set itself is not always luring connected consumers away from smaller devices even when consumers have both options. 

Another interesting finding is this one: long-form video viewing accounts for nearly 40% of smartphone video viewing each week. That also runs counter to the conventional wisdom that mobile viewers want “snackable content.”

Online video technology provider Ooyala uncovered similar habits in a separate study. The firm said that online video consumption on mobile devices rose in the first quarter of the year, with a 41% boost on smartphones and a 32% increase on tablets. As with mobile video consumption, tablet use peaks in the evening with about one-third of tablet video viewing taking place between 7 p.m. and 11 p.m. Meanwhile, only 17% of video viewing on computers occurs during those evening hours, suggesting that tablets and other mobile devices may be taking over the evening viewing time.

Ooyala has also seen an increase in the viewing of long-form content. Videos longer than 10 minutes now account for more than half of all online video plays in the first quarter.

Marketers and programmers would be wise to pay attention to findings like these that go against the grain.