
SPRINGFIELD, Va. Its probably no surprise that Americans are increasingly watching video on their cell phones and tablets. Just how much mobile video consumption happens is starting to become interesting, and it is the subject of a study by Citrix.
Citrix, probably best known for its collaboration software that allows people to have joint computer conferences, also analyzes trends is data usage. In a report released a couple days ago, the company said that mobile video data is now more than half of all cellular data.
In fact, North America leads all regions with video viewing consuming 54.6 percent of all cellular data. Next highest is Europe at 52 percent, and the lower number there might be one reason why European telecom companies have started lobbying the European Commission to free up spectrum at UHF frequencies now used by broadcasters. Seeing that North American cellular companies have gotten that spectrum and implemented LTE networks, the Europeans dont want to fall too far behind.
Drilling down into the data, social networking (such as Facebook activity) generates only 10.3 percent of all cellular data. However, of that 10.3 percent, 87 percent is attributed to video and images. In other words, approximately nine percent of all cellular data is the result of video and image activity on Facebook and other social networking sites.
MAJOR PORTALS
Two major portals for mobile video are YouTube and Netflix, which show interesting differences in their consumption patterns. Of the two (at least in 2014), YouTube is the 800-pound gorilla, responsible more than 71 percent of all mobile video data.
When it comes to what people are watching on these two services, YouTube and Netflix complement each other with their usage patterns. According to Citrix, 81 percent of all mobile YouTube viewing is for less than five minutes, while more than 76 percent of all mobile Netflix viewing is for more than five minutes.
Another interesting find in the statistics is that Apple iOS devices proportionately consume considerably more video than Android devices. Android users average 27.5 percent video consumption daily, while iOS devices claim 38 percent.
Speed has something to do with data usage, as Citrix found that 4G LTE devices are 1.5 times more likely to view video than 3G devices. This completely correlates with my personal experience, since I am much more likely to call up a video on my 4G phone when I am in a 4G coverage area. When I get good 4G coverage, high-resolution videos load in a couple of seconds and do not buffer, while 3G video watching is a frustration of video buffering and loss of resolution.
The good news for us in North America is that Citrix found we have the lowest buffering and server response times in the world, almost certainly the result of fast LTE wireless networks that have rolled out quickly in the U.S. An example given in the Citrix study is that videos stall for about 7.5 seconds out of one minute in North America, while that number is 38.4 seconds in the Asia-Pacific region.
PERVASIVE ADVERTISING
Although advertising seems pervasive on the Internet, and we see ads on our cell phones all the time, Citrix found that advertising consumed only about two percent of the total data. If you pay $50 per month for your wireless account, this means that $1 goes to pay for the ads you dont want to see in the first place. That may not be much, but it is an annoyance for those of us who are naturally thrifty.
Broadcasters may not like the upheaval in the UHF spectrum that has caused multiple channel re-alignments. However, consumers are voting with their money to pay for upgraded data services that telecom companies have quickly built out in the former broadcast spectrum.
Just how fast is LTE cellular service? I regularly test my LTE connection in various locations, and it certainly varies depending on where I am. However, at home on my dining room table, I routinely get download speeds of more than 20 Mbps and upload speeds of more than 10 Mbps. There is no question that you can deliver quality video with such a service, as long as you dont mind watching it on a tiny screen equipped with a miniscule loudspeaker.
Most recent headlines
01/01/2026
Latin Grammy Cultural Foundation Announces 2026 Noel Schajris Scholarship The scholarship will cover tuition and housing for one Berklee College of Music stud...
01/01/2026
New year, new games, all with RTX 5080-powered cloud energy. GeForce NOW is kicking off 2026 by looking back at an unforgettable year of wins and wildly high fr...
31/12/2025
Back to All News
NFL Christmas Gameday on Netflix Scores Again With the Lions-V...
30/12/2025
As the College Football Playoff Enters the Quarterfinals, ESPN Blows Out Its Meg...
30/12/2025
SVG's Best of 2025: Original ArticlesTake a look back at all our coverage of big-time productions, game-changing technologies, and state-of-the-art new faci...
30/12/2025
MELBOURNE, Fla., Dec. 30, 2025 - L3Harris Technologies (NYSE: LHX) will release its fourth quarter 2025 financial results before the market opens on Thursday, J...
30/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
30/12/2025
It marked the first civilian operational authorization for a HAPS flight in Europe, led by Space42's subsidiary, Mira Aerospace
The flight demonstrated HAP...
29/12/2025
San Francisco 49ers Strike Gold With Halftime Laser SpectacularStunning display caps $200 million renovation of Levi's Stadium techBy Dan Daley, Audio Edito...
29/12/2025
The Cup's Around the Corner: An Inside Look at Broadcast Preparations for th...
29/12/2025
SVG's Best of 2025: Longform VideoWatch the standout keynote conversations, deep dives, and panel discussions from the year for free on SVG PLAY!By Brandon ...
29/12/2025
From crisper Lossless audio and immersive music videos in beta to new Audiobooks+ plans, custom transitions between tracks, and in-app Messages, we keep levelin...
29/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
27/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
26/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
26/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
25/12/2025
Holiday lights are twinkling, hot cocoa's on the stove and gamers are settling in for a well-earned break.
Whether staying in or heading on a winter getawa...
24/12/2025
What is AI good for? Posted by MTI Film on December 24, 2025
What is AI good for?
What is AI good for?
It's been three years since ChatGPT first cap...
24/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
24/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
24/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
24/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
24/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
24/12/2025
Back to All News
The Boyfriend' Season 2 Unveils Heartwarming Trailer, Key...
24/12/2025
Back to All News
Love, Fights, and Everything in Between: Badly in Love' Returns for Season 2
Entertainment
24 December 2025
GlobalJapan
Link copied t...
24/12/2025
Scripps Research study links sleep variability with sleep apnea and hypertension How consumers' digital activity trackers could enable personalized health s...
23/12/2025
How guilas Cibae as Dominican Winter League Games Are Locally Produced for Glob...
23/12/2025
BitFire's Jim Akimchuk on Supplying Scalability and Customization in the Clo...
23/12/2025
CAMB.AI Enables European Athletics to Offer Multi-Language SupportPlan is to eventually offer translation into all languages spoken in EuropeBy Ken Kerschbaumer...
23/12/2025
Analysis: As sports media values trend negative, scarcity and quality are king By Callum McCarthy, Editor-at-Large
Monday, December 22, 2025 - 14:08
Print ...
23/12/2025
ESPN, Disney, and NBA Return to the Animated Altcast Fray With Second Edition of...
23/12/2025
End the Year on a High Note and Donate to the Sports Broadcasting Fund Today!By Ken Kerschbaumer, Editorial Director
Tuesday, December 23, 2025 - 12:25 pm
P...
23/12/2025
The year is winding down, the weather outside is frightful, and it's the perfect time to escape into a story that warms the heart. For listeners looking for...
23/12/2025
A Zeus motor is hot fire tested at L3Harris' Camden, Arkansas, solid rocket ...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Lightware will exhibit several major product innovations at ISE 2026, including the new USB-C BOOSTER-V1, Google Meet. integration for various Taurus UCX models...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
23/12/2025
Taking the Stage at Carnegie Hall-On a Global Scale Boston Conservatory Orchestra students reflect on their epic concert marking the 80th session of the UN Gene...
23/12/2025
Back to All News
Netflix's The Great Flood and Culinary Class Wars 2 Top Gl...
23/12/2025
Back to All News
Stranger Things By the Numbers: How the Global Phenomenon Shap...
23/12/2025
Experience the power of WO Automation for Radio's newest service, the System Effectiveness Review. Designed to help you achieve more, a System Effectiveness...
23/12/2025
23 Dec 2025
VEON's Beeline Kazakhstan and Rakuten Symphony Collaborate to A...
23/12/2025
Back to All News
How Steamy Can It Get? Single's Inferno' Season 5 Pre...
23/12/2025
Back to All News
33 Million Global Viewers on Netflix Watched Jake Paul vs. Ant...