Issue 179  14th September 2018

How the BBC is getting people to watch short-form video

The BBC has started producing short-form video content and has setup a new "unit" for this very purpose.

Since January, BBC Ideas has published 276 videos that have been commissioned from independent production companies, taken from other units from the BBC or created by the Ideas own five-person team. Most run two to four minutes long and become part of themed autoplay playlists like “reflections on dying,” “challenging taboos” and “extraordinary pioneers.”

The BBC is required by it's own definitions to innovate and test new formats, and the short-form video unit is a response to a younger audience who are looking for thought provoking shorter content.

It's interesting to see the BBC, a public broadcaster, taking this approach. But it does beg the question, how thought provoking can you be in a 3 - 4 minute video which is typically consumed in a session with multiple other videos?

If the internet has thought us anything in the recent past, it's that to be provocative is easy —but to be thought-provoking is a different story entirely. However, the tack taken by the BBC here is interesting because the subject matter is self-consciously heavy-hitting.

But whether an 4-minute piece called "Dying is not as bad you think" amounts to anything other than emotional potpourri remains to be seen.

Pokémon Go is letting players nominate new pokéstop locations

Pokémon Go released in the summer of 2016 but can still be a frustrating game if you not from a large urban area, why? Because pokéstops are rare.

Pokestops are hubs of activity within the game world, usually based around a landmark or area of significance. The less of these in your area the more barren and uneventful the game can feel. Now Niantic, the developer of Pokémon Go have come up with a potential solution.

Players will be able to nominate potential pokéstops by submitting a photo and description of a location, which will then be reviewed for potential inclusion in the game. This will give the user the power to bring life to their corner of the pokéworld. An interesting solution to an interesting problem.