Upcoming launch of movie streaming service Quibi

guest · Oct 19, 2019

T-Mobile signs deal with upcoming movie streaming service Quibi
Quibi will launch in April 2020
October 18, 2019
https://www.cnet.com/news/t-mobile-signs-deal-with-upcoming-movie-streaming-service-quibi/

T-Mobile has signed a deal with short movie streaming service Quibi, the companies said on Friday. The carrier will be Quibi's exclusive wireless distributor when the service launches in April 2020, as reported earlier by the Los Angeles Times.

Meg Whitman, Quibi CEO and former Hewlett Packard Enterprise chief executive, said in an emailed press release the service will "deliver premium video content for millennials on a technology platform that is built exclusively for mobile."

"A telecommunications partner like T-Mobile, with their broad coverage today and impressive 5G roadmap, is the perfect fit," Whitman said.
T-Mobile and Quibi said more details of their partnership will be coming soon.

The service was originally expected to launch by late 2019 at a cost of $5 a month with advertising, or $8 a month ad-free.
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Los Angeles Times: Quibi has partnered with T-Mobile as it prepares for April launch

The pact marks a significant step in Quibi’s plans to deliver premium content viewed in 10 minutes or less to mobile phone users.
Details of the partnership, such as whether T-Mobile customers will receive discounts or whether the Quibi app will be pre-installed on their phones, have yet to be determined. Financial terms were not disclosed.
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guest · Oct 23, 2019

Streaming service Quibi sells out of its $150M in first-year ad inventory
October 23, 2019
https://techcrunch.com/2019/10/23/s...s-out-of-its-150m-in-first-year-ad-inventory/

Jeffrey Katzenberg’s mobile-only streaming service Quibi hasn’t even launched, but it’s already sold out of its $150 million first-year advertising inventory, the company announced this morning.
The service, which officially debuts in April 2020, added new advertisers Discover, General Mills, T-Mobile and Taco Bell, which join Quibi’s existing lineup of ad partners Procter & Gamble, PepsiCo, ABInBev, Walmart, Progressive and Google.

In addition to being an advertiser, T-Mobile only days ago announced a partnership with Quibi, as well.
The streaming service had cited T-Mobile’s “impressive 5G roadmap” as one of the reasons it went for the deal, but T-Mobile’s advertising contribution probably didn’t hurt either.
For an entirely unseen product, it’s notable that Quibi is already sold out for year one. That speaks to its ability to sell brands on its core concept — a sort of Netflix for the mobile era, where higher-quality content is chopped up into smaller bites (or “quick bites”), and viewable no matter how you hold your phone.
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However, what may be most responsible for the early ad sales is Quibi’s founder, Jeffrey Katzenberg. He’s not someone the industry is willing to bet against at this point.

“We are seeing a tremendous response from advertising partners who recognize the value of Quibi’s premium, brand-safe, mobile platform that is focused on the highly coveted millennial audience,” said Meg Whitman, CEO, Quibi. “The world-class brands that are partnering with us in advance of our launch is remarkable, and it speaks to the opportunity in front of us,” she said.
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guest · Jan 8, 2020

Quibi’s Jeffrey Katzenberg and Meg Whitman offer a deeper look at the new streaming service
January 8, 2020
https://techcrunch.com/2020/01/08/quibi-ces/

Quibi founder Jeffrey Katzenberg and CEO Meg Whitman took the stage this morning at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas to offer a deeper look into the technology behind the soon-to-launch mobile streaming service.

The company had already revealed much about its intentions with Quibi, including how it’s the first streaming service designed exclusively for mobile devices, not the living room TV.
[...] what Quibi hadn’t yet discussed in detail was the underlying, patent-pending technology that takes advantage of mobile devices to push forward a new form of storytelling.

Specifically, Quibi is using a new engineering technology it’s calling “Turnstyle,” which allows the viewer to move between portrait mode viewing and landscape viewing, seamlessly — and without any black bars to fill the rest of the screen when switching to landscape video.
This technology, when demoed, worked very well. The shift from portrait to landscape and back again was smooth and fast — an almost imperceptible transition.
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Update: During the presentation, Katzenberg, Whitman and other Quibi executives tried to paint the service as something that sits at the intersection of creativity and technology, and between Silicon Valley and Hollywood.
Whitman described Quibi as “the very first entertainment technology platform optimized for mobile viewing,” adding that, “We needed to make space for creators and engineers to be in the same conversation.”
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Engadget: Quibi's secret weapon: Videos that work in portrait and landscape mode

Finally, mobile videos that look good in each orientation
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Rasheed187 · Jan 11, 2020

I still don't get it, they want to make movies that run for only 10 minutes? That's not what I call a movie, that's called a videoclip.

guest · Feb 21, 2020

Quibi shares some clues about how its app might work
Via renders of screenshots
February 20, 2020
https://www.theverge.com/2020/2/20/21146270/quibi-app-screenshots-ios-android-play-store

Quibi’s apps are now available for preorder on the App Store and Play Store, and they give a look at how the mobile streaming app might actually work when it launches on April 6th (via TechCrunch).
Based on the renders in the listings, Quibi seems like it looks and feels like, well, a streaming video app. You can check out all of the available renders in the gallery below: [...]

When browsing content in the app, it looks like there will be four tabs on the bottom bar, labeled “For You,” “Browse,” “Following,” and “Downloads.” “For You” promotes shows using big cards that remind me a lot of the cards in the App Store’s “Today” tab.

The renders also show what watching a video on Quibi might actually look like. The boldest design choice, in my opinion, is the vertical seek bar when in portrait mode, which seems like it could be a really handy way to scrub through a video. Otherwise, the playback UI looks fine and doesn’t seem like it will block much of the onscreen content.
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guest · Mar 4, 2020

Quibi closes on $750 million as its date with destiny approaches
March 4, 2020
https://techcrunch.com/2020/03/04/quibi-closes-on-750-million-as-its-date-with-destiny-approaches/

With just over one month to go until its official launch date, the short-form, subscription streaming service Quibi has closed on $750 million in new financing, according to a report in the company’s private PR firm The Wall Street Journal.
The company declined to disclose exactly who invested in the new round (which is always a great sign) and didn’t comment on how the new investment would effect the company’s valuation.

According to the story in the WSJ, the company’s new investment contains both existing investors, like the Alibaba Group and Hollywood Studios, along with WndrCo, the investment firm and holding company launched by Quibi’s co-founder and Hollywood mogul Jeffrey Katzenberg.
To date, Quibi has raised $1.75 billion.

Quibi, unlike some of the streaming services that it’s going to compete with, doesn’t have a back catalog of titles to tap to pad out the service, so it’s coming to market with a whopping 175 shows in its first year with 8,500 episodes, which run no longer than 10 minutes.
A lot depends on the reception of those shows.
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Whether it’s as big of a hit with potential subscribers as with advertisers remains to be seen. The service could still become the Mike Bloomberg campaign of streaming media — a lot of money and no discernible result.
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guest · Mar 6, 2020

Quibi's Lineup at Launch on April 6
March 6, 2020
https://www.cdrinfo.com/d7/content/quibis-lineup-launch-april-6

Mobile streamer Quibi is one month away from debut, coming out with 51 shows and movies.

Quibi delivers quick-bite original content, shows from stars, episodes in 10 minutes or less. All are designed for your iOS or Android phone, and it is quick enough for daily commutes, lunch breaks, or lines at the coffee shop. Users will be offered personalized feeds showing them what’s new, trending episodes, and search options.
The content will be framed to fit your screen no matter how you hold your phone.

Quibi's plans are: Quibi (some ads): $4.99/mo. / Quibi (no ads): $7.99/mo.
Subscription begins after a 90-day free trial, if applicable, and will auto-renew each month.Payment will be charged to your App Store account each month unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24 hours before the renewal date.
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Overall, Quibi plans to release 175 original shows and 8,500 episodes in the first year.

Quibi divides programming into three categories: “Movies in Chapters,” which are feature-length films broken into episodes 7-10 minutes long; unscripted and documentary series; and Daily Essentials shows, 5-6 minute quick bites of news, entertainment and lifestyle programming. Note that while Quibi is touting a list of 51 launch titles, some of these are news programs that are just in different dayparts.

Here’s the full list of content slated to be on Quibi at launch: [...]
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guest · Mar 9, 2020

mood said: ↑

Quibi’s Jeffrey Katzenberg and Meg Whitman offer a deeper look at the new streaming service January 8, 2020
Engadget: Quibi's secret weapon: Videos that work in portrait and landscape mode
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Quibi accused of patent infringement for its 'Turnstyle' video feature
Less than a month before its launch
March 9, 2020
https://www.engadget.com/2020/03/09/quibi-eko-turnstyle-patent-dispute/

The short-form, mobile video streaming platform Quibi is scheduled to launch on April 6th, but it's already facing a patent infringement dispute. Eko, a New York-based company that creates interactive videos, claims Quibi used patented tech and stolen trade secrets to develop its "Turnstyle" technology, The Wall Street Journal reports.

The tech in question allows Quibi to play different videos depending on whether the viewer is holding their phone horizontally or vertically, and it's central to Quibi's offering. Eko's lawyers sent Quibi a letter demanding that it stop using the technology or license it.
Quibi denies Eko's allegations, and the company has filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles federal court seeking a declaratory judgment that it didn't infringe on Eko's patent or misappropriate trade secrets.

"Our Turnstyle technology was developed internally at Quibi by our talented engineers, and we have, in fact, received a patent for it," Quibi said in a statement shared by WSJ. "These claims have absolutely no merit and we will vigorously defend ourselves against them in court."
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guest · Mar 10, 2020

Quibi will have pre-roll ads that you can’t skip on its videos
Except for customers who shell out $8 a month for an ad-free version
March 10, 2020
https://www.theverge.com/2020/3/10/...o-advertising-non-skippable-streaming-youtube

The worst part about using YouTube as a free service is the 5- or 15-second non-skippable ads that play before many videos — but at least using YouTube is free. Quibi’s ad-supported tier will also run non-skippable pre-roll ads at launch. But unlike YouTube, it’ll cost subscribers $4.99 a month.

Quibi, a shortform video streaming service, partnered with 10 companies for exclusive ads in the streamer’s first year, according to Axios: Progressive, Discover, General Mills, Procter & Gamble, AB InBev, Taco Bell, Pepsi, T-Mobile, Google, and Walmart.
Those companies can run pre-roll ads in 6-, 10-, or 15-second increments before the episode of any show. Subscribers won’t be treated to any mid-roll ads, which are the commercials that appear halfway through a video.

Fifteen-second ads should run on videos that appear between five and seven minutes or longer, according to Axios.
Collectively, Quibi will run 2.5 minutes of advertising for every one hour of programming. That’s lower than the amount of ads that runs on traditional television.
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Advertising is going to play a crucial role on Quibi. CEO Meg Whitman thinks most people will opt for the $4.99-a-month ad-supported streaming plan rather than the more expensive $7.99-a-month ad-free tier.
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guest · Mar 21, 2020

T-Mobile’s deal with Quibi is reportedly only available to customers with more than one line
It’s similar to T-Mobile’s deal with Netflix
March 20, 2020
https://www.theverge.com/2020/3/20/...ee-subscribers-netflix-disney-hbo-max-peacock

Much like T-Mobile’s “Netflix on Us” promotion, customers who want free access to shortform video streaming service Quibi will have to meet a specific requirement: they must have a multiple-line plan with the carrier.

Quibi will only be free in an exclusive offer “to subscribers who pay for two or more lines of postpaid service,” Protocol reports. The company doesn’t have any plans to share just yet, The Verge has learned.
Quibi is also offering a 90-day free trial to people who sign up on the website before April 20th. The trial initially ran through April 6th, but has since been extended to April 20th. Quibi will also only be available on mobile devices, unlike streamers like Disney Plus, Netflix, and Hulu.

The company first revealed its partnership with T-Mobile back in October.
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Launching at a time when people are looking for more entertainment might be just what Quibi needs right now.
Quibi is set to launch on April 6th. There are two different tiers: a $4.99 plan with ads and a $7.99 plan without ads.
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guest · Apr 1, 2020

Quibi expands 90-day free trial for anyone who signs up through April
April 1, 2020
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/tech...anyone-who-signs-up-through-april/ar-BB121VE9

Quibi, a star-studded mobile streaming service for short-form video, has pushed back its deadline to qualify for a 90-day free trial. Launching Monday in the US and Canada, Quibi will offer the free trial to anyone who signs up through the end of April.

Originally, Quibi offered the 90-day trial to people who preregistered before its launch date on April 6. Then, as measures to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus started to lock millions of people inside their homes and stifle the economy, Quibi expanded the free trial deadline until April 20.
Now any new subscribers can unlock the extended free period before May 1.

Quibi will have a $5 monthly subscription that includes ads and an $8 monthly subscription that's ad free. Before launch on Monday, you can sign up to get details of the free trial by submitting your email address at Quibi's web site -- you'll also receive email updates from Quibi if you do.
After the service launches Monday, you can unlock the free trial by downloading the app and signing up for the service before the deadline.
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guest · Apr 2, 2020

mood said: ↑

Quibi accused of patent infringement for its 'Turnstyle' video feature
Less than a month before its launch
March 9, 2020
https://www.engadget.com/2020/03/09/quibi-eko-turnstyle-patent-dispute/
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...another legal action:
Quibi Target of Injunction Request Seeking to Block Its Turnstyle Mobile Tech
April 1, 2020
https://variety.com/2020/digital/news/quibi-eko-injunction-block-turnstyle-mobile-tech-1203552019/

Five days before Quibi’s scheduled April 6 launch, the Jeffrey Katzenberg-founded mobile-video venture has been hit with another legal action — demanding that Quibi be forced to stop using technology it allegedly stole from an interactive-video company.

The motion seeking a preliminary injunction against Quibi comes from New York-based Eko, which last month sued Quibi for allegedly infringing one of Eko’s patents and misappropriating trade secrets.
On Wednesday (April 1), Eko filed a request with the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California seeking a preliminary injunction enjoining Quibi from “misappropriating Eko’s proprietary technology for mobile device optimized ‘Real Time Switching.'”
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Quibi is set to launch next Monday, April 6 [...]
In its request for an injunction, Eko says derisively, “Quibi appears to believe that because of its star power and its efforts to attract Hollywood talent, it is above the law.”
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guest · Apr 2, 2020

mood said: ↑

T-Mobile’s deal with Quibi is reportedly only available to customers with more than one line
It’s similar to T-Mobile’s deal with Netflix
March 20, 2020
https://www.theverge.com/2020/3/20/...ee-subscribers-netflix-disney-hbo-max-peacock
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T-Mobile offering a free year of Quibi streaming service on April 6
Once that year is up, things get a little tricky
April 2, 2020
https://www.androidcentral.com/t-mobile-offering-free-year-quibi-streaming-service-april-6

Like it or not, a new streaming service is about to hit the market — Quibi. We understand if you're feeling a little overwhelmed with all of the streaming options that are now available, but Quibi is a bit different in the sense that it's only available on your phone and only has shows that are 10-minutes or less.

Quibi officially launches on April 6, and when it does, T-Mobile customers will be able to get a year of the service absolutely free. So long as you redeem the offer by July 7 on your T-Mobile account and have two or more lines of service, the carrier will give you a full year of Quibi so you can stream your heart out. Quibi will cost $4.99/month for regular customers, making this a solid $60 value.
You'll get Quibi in addition to your free Netflix account you already have from T-Mobile during that first year, but once it's up, you'll need to pick only one of the services to keep.

It remains to be seen if Quibi catches on as a mainstream service, but giving T-Mobile customers a free year is a smart move on its part. I
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Press Release: T-Mobile Customers Get Quibi on Us! Original Movie-Quality Content Designed for Mobile

guest · Apr 6, 2020

Quit trying to make Quibi happen
Quibi raised $1.75 billion for so-so shows trapped on your phone
April 6, 2020
https://www.engadget.com/quibi-mobile-video-review-040106790.html

Nobody asked for Quibi. Nobody, that is, except for Jeffrey Katzenberg, the founder of Dreamworks Pictures and famed Hollywood producer. Where other mobile video startups failed, like Samsung’s long-forgotten Milk Video and Verizon's own Go90 (RIP), Katzenberg figured he could succeed by pouring money (somehow he’s raised $1.75 billion so far!) into top talent and well produced shows.

The company's chief product officer, Tom Conrad, the former CTO of Pandora and Snapchat product VP, also seemed excited about its potential. Still, it was hard to truly judge Quibi until I got a look at some of its shows.
Why, exactly, would anyone want to pay $5 a month (it’s also launching with a 90-day free trial) for this stuff -- especially when you still have to deal with ads and can't even watch it on other screens?
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Don't get me wrong, it’s entertaining in a trashy TV way, so I'm sure it'll find some fans. But five minutes isn't enough time to build the drama you'd find in an episode [...]
Quibi's biggest flaw at the moment is that none of its content stands out from the wealth of media already available to us.

But frankly, after testing the service for a bit, I’m not excited to see some of my favorite filmmakers make content that’ll be trapped on tiny phone screens and quickly forgotten.
And then there are the ads. [...]
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VentureBeat: Quibi risks mobile video platform launch amid quarantine and economic turbulence

As the April 6 launch date arrives, even the team building the service has no idea whether their timing is auspicious or catastrophic.
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guest · Apr 8, 2020

Quibi App Downloads on Launch Day Were 7.5% of Disney Plus’ Booming Debut
April 7, 2020
https://variety.com/2020/digital/news/quibi-number-app-downloads-disney-plus-1234573031/

Quibi’s first-day app downloads hit around 300,000, coming after months of steady hype surrounding Jeffrey Katzenberg’s ambitious mobile-only streaming service.

That’s according to preliminary estimates from mobile-analytics firm Sensor Tower. Currently, as of Tuesday morning, Quibi ranks as the No. 3 top free app overall on Apple’s App Store in the U.S. (following Zoom and TikTok).
Compared with the bow of Disney Plus, Quibi had a far smaller jump out of the gate: On Nov. 12, 2019, the Mouse House’s streaming app notched approximately 4 million installs in the U.S. and Canada.

By contrast, Quibi has no library content at all, featuring a launch-day lineup of 50 shows and “chapterized” movies designed for mobile-only viewing.
Quibi did not itself release any user-signup or download stats, but the company said in a statement, “We are very excited about our Day One performance.”
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It’s impossible to forecast how well Quibi will fare based on the initial download figures, in large part because the mobile TV service is free for 90 days to anyone (and free to T-Mobile unlimited wireless customers on multiline plans for one year).
Once the free trial period is over, Quibi will cost $4.99 per month with ads and $7.99 per month without ads.
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guest · Apr 9, 2020

Quibi is the anti-TikTok (that’s a bad thing)
4 reasons it bites
April 9, 2020
https://techcrunch.com/2020/04/09/quibi-vs-tiktok/

It takes either audacious self-confidence or reckless hubris to build a completely asocial video app in 2020. You can decide which best describes Quibi, Hollywood’s $1.75 billion-funded attempt at a mobile-only Netflix of six to 10-minute micro-TV show episodes.
Quibi manages to miss every trend and tactic that could help make its app popular. The company seems to believe it can succeed on only its content (mediocre) and marketing dollars (fewer than it needs).

It’s unshareable, prescriptive, sluggish, cumbersome and unfriendly. Quibi’s unwillingness to borrow anything from social networks makes the app feel cold and isolated, like watching reality shows in the vacuum of space.
In that sense, Quibi is the inverse of TikTok, which feels fiercely alive.
TikTok is designed to immediately immerse you in crowd-vetted content that grabs your attention and inspires you to spread your take on it to friends.

Here’s a breakdown of the major missteps by Quibi, why TikTok does it better and how this new streaming app can get with the times.
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guest · Apr 13, 2020

Meg Whitman says Quibi reached 1.7 million downloads in first week
Whitman said the company would accelerate its road map to cast Quibi videos from phones to TVs in light of the crisis
April 13, 2020
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/04/13/meg...-1point7-million-downloads-in-first-week.html

New mobile streaming service Quibi saw 1.7 million downloads in its first week, CEO Meg Whitman said Monday on CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street.”

The service launched last Monday in the middle of the Covid-19 pandemic, calling into question whether consumers would adopt the mobile streaming platform while cooped up at home with full-screen TVs.
Still, the adoption is small relative to launches like Disney’s streaming service, Disney+, which announced the day after it started that it had more than 10 million subscribers.
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With so many potential customers for Quibi working from home as stay-at-home orders sweep the U.S., Whitman said the company is accelerating its plans to enable the app to cast to TVs.
While the feature wasn’t planned to be part of the launch, Whitman said it was always in the cards for later on.
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guest · Apr 23, 2020

Quibi to Add TV-Casting Feature Next Month, Claims to Hit 2.7 Million App Downloads
April 22, 2020
https://variety.com/2020/digital/news/quibi-tv-casting-2-7-million-app-downloads-1234587512/

Quibi, which launched two weeks ago as a mobile-only video streaming app for on-the-go viewing, said it plans to add the ability to “cast” content to compatible TVs next month.

The company, led by founder Jeffrey Katzenberg and CEO Meg Whitman, also announced that its app has been downloaded more than 2.7 million times in the first two weeks. In the first week, according to the company, it hit 1.7 million downloads.
According to analytics company Sensor Tower, Quibi has around 2.3 million downloads to date.

Meanwhile, it’s worth noting that downloads do not equate to active users, as some of those who downloaded the Quibi app have likely watched very little of the quick-bite content.
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How Quibi’s casting-to-the-TV feature will work is unclear; a company rep did not provide details.
The top mobile-casting technologies are Google Cast, which let mobile devices send audio and video streams to compatible TVs or other devices; and Apple’s AirPlay.
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guest · May 11, 2020

Jeffrey Katzenberg Blames Pandemic for Quibi’s Rough Start
Even with a free 90-day trial, the app has been installed by only 2.9 million customers...
May 11, 2020
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/11/business/media/jeffrey-katzenberg-quibi-coronavirus.html

Downloads have been anemic, despite a lineup that includes producers and stars like Jennifer Lopez, LeBron James, Idris Elba, Steven Spielberg and Chrissy Teigen.
It came out when millions of people were not going anywhere because of stay-at-home orders across the country.

“I attribute everything that has gone wrong to coronavirus,” Mr. Katzenberg said in a video interview. “Everything. But we own it.”
Quibi fell out of the list of the 50 most downloaded free iPhone apps in the United States a week after it went live on April 6. It is now ranked No. 125, behind the game app Knock’em All and the language-learning app Duolingo, according to the analytics firm Sensor Tower.
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guest · May 26, 2020

Quibi Adds AirPlay Support, With Chromecast Support Coming in June
May 26, 2020
https://thestreamable.com/news/quibi-adds-airplay-support-with-chromecast-support-coming-in-june

One of the biggest knocks on Quibi when it launched in April is that despite being designed for mobile, it didn’t support AirPlay or Google Cast. This meant that if you wanted to share a video at home, you had to gather around a mobile device instead of being able to display on the big screen.

The company’s Chief Product Officer Tom Conrad confirmed that AirPlay support is live on the latest update (1.3) of their iOS App. For those with Android, Chromecast, or other devices that support Google Cast — the company will be adding support in June.

Sure we designed Quibi for on-the-go, but these days visiting the family room is like a day trip… so AirPlay support is live for iOS in Quibi 1.3. Working hard on Chromecast too which will be available in June.
— Tom Conrad (@tconrad) May 26, 2020
AirPlay support is available from iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch to Apple TV and select Smart TV devices from LG, Samsung, and VIZIO.
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guest · May 27, 2020

Report: Quibi advertisers look to defer payments following disappointing launch
Is the short-form content failing to grab our attention?
May 27, 2020
https://www.techspot.com/news/85387...k-defer-payments-following-disappointing.html

In a nutshell: Quibi, the mobile-focused streaming service featuring short-form content, is reportedly in trouble just a month after launch. According to a new report, many of its major advertisers are looking to defer payments as the company seeks to implement cost-cutting measures.

Quibi, which is a combination of the words “quick” and “bites,” was founded by Hollywood mogul Jeffrey Katzenberg and managed to raise $1.75 billion from investors. But it hasn’t proved to be an instant hit.
According to the Wall Street Journal, advertisers such as PepsiCo, Yum Brands, and Walmart are concerned about the low viewership numbers and the impact of Covid-19.
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Part of the agreement with advertisers is that Quibi will deliver a set number of ad views over an agreed period.
Production of new shows is mostly shut down in Hollywood, and the service’s short-format content is designed to be watched while commuting and on work breaks, which few people have experienced over the last couple of months.

The Journal writes that Quibi executives are also blaming the poor launch on an over-reliance on scripted programming, a pool of inactive users, and lower-than-hoped enthusiasm from some viewers.
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guest · Jun 9, 2020

Quibi adds Chromecast support for watching shows on a big screen
After adding AirPlay support last month
June 9, 2020
https://www.theverge.com/2020/6/9/2...support-feature-launch-apple-airplay-tv-shows

Streaming service Quibi has updated its iOS app to support streaming to a television using Google Chromecast. The update, released Tuesday, arrives a couple of weeks after Quibi added AirPlay support, which at the time marked the first way to stream its shows and other short-form videos beyond a mobile screen. As of Tuesday evening, the Android version of the app, which was last updated on May 20th, does not appear to support Chromecast streaming yet.

It took the company more than a month to launch AirPlay support. And now, nearly two months since launch, we’re getting Chromecast support, too. But the company has yet to put out dedicated Quibi apps for Amazon Fire devices, Roku, or any other streaming platform. Right now, the only way to stream Quibi on the big screen is to use a mirroring feature from Apple or Google.
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guest · Jun 15, 2020

Quibi on Pace to Hit Less Than 30% of Year-One Paid Subscriber Goal (Report)
June 15, 2020
https://variety.com/2020/digital/ne...r-one-paid-subscriber-goal-report-1234635161/

The bad news for Quibi continues, as the struggling Jeffrey Katzenberg-founded video startup is in danger of massively missing its first-year target for paying subscribers based on slowing app-download figures, according to a Wall Street Journal report.

An unflattering piece published Sunday by the Wall Street Journal detailed infighting between Katzenberg and CEO Meg Whitman and reported that Quibi is currently on track to miss its subscriber goal for year one by more than 5 million.
Citing an anonymous source, the Journal reported that at Quibi’s current pace, it will sign up fewer than 2 million paying subscribers by April 2020 based on its current signup trajectory. The company had projected 7.4 million subscribers after one year.
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guest · Jun 17, 2020

Quibi in Talks to Bring Streaming App to Roku, Amazon Fire TV (EXCLUSIVE)
June 16, 2020
https://variety.com/2020/digital/news/quibi-streaming-roku-amazon-fire-tv-1234637152/

Quibi, built for mobile-only viewing by an audience envisioned to be phone-toting millennials, now wants to get on more living-room TVs.

The company, founded by ex-movie mogul Jeffrey Katzenberg, has been in talks with both Roku and Amazon about building native apps for their connected-TV platforms, Variety has learned. In Amazon’s case, that would be its family of Fire TV devices.
Quibi’s negotiations with Amazon have “recently picked back up,” according to a source familiar with the discussions.

One reason for the urgency: Quibi’s mobile app download and viewership numbers have fallen far short of its expectations, before it even starts charging for subscriptions.
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At this point, one thing Katzenberg — who has raised $1.75 billion for the venture — almost certainly will not do is throw in the towel on Quibi.

“Quibi launched only two months ago. It’s far too early to start packing up, discarding its core strategy and calling it a day,” said Peter Csathy, founder and chairman of Creatv Media, a consulting and creative services firm.
It’s imperative for Quibi to get to more TV platforms, Csathy agreed: [...]
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guest · Jun 20, 2020

Jeffrey Katzenberg Remains Upbeat on Quibi: ‘I’m Still Quite Optimistic This Is Gonna Work’
June 18, 2020
https://variety.com/2020/digital/ne...seriesfest-coronavirus-optimistic-1234642101/

Jeffrey Katzenberg hasn’t given up on Quibi’s mobile-first business model.

The founder and chairman of Quibi has high hopes that his short-form premium video service — which has stalled out of the gate — will take off once COVID-19 quarantines are lifted later this summer.

“I’m still quite optimistic this is gonna work,” said Katzenberg, speaking Thursday during SeriesFest, in a virtual edition of the sixth annual TV festival.
Starting in July “when the country opens up… we are all going to be back on the go again,” he said.
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The takeaway is that Katzenberg remains convinced there’s a millennial-skewing market for a premium mobile SVOD, discounting the possibility that people simply aren’t interested in watching (or, more to the point, paying for) high-end entertainment on smartphones in short episodic chunks.
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