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What Counts as a View? (Updated)

I. Research Abstract

This report discusses the findings of an experiment designed to test which actions result in a "view" as measured on 14 online video websites. The impetus for this research was to identify the differences in view counting among popular video sites, particularly as the online video industry has not yet adopted a standard definition for a view. The implications are relevant for video advertisers, content publishers, and those that might seek to artificially inflate the popularity of a given video.

The methodology employed in this study is a starting point and by no means an exhaustive list of testable scenarios.

II. Methodology

Four scenarios were tested in this experiment:

1. Watching a video start-to-finish multiple times
2. Watching a video and stopping more than half-way (but not to completion)
3. Refreshing the browser after video play has begun
4. Watching a video multiple times through a player embedded on another site

III. Summary of Findings

Site specifics:

AOL Uncut - Video was marked "Private" to prevent others from finding it via search or by browsing the site. All tested categories resulted in views counted, including embedded views.

Blip - Blip only logs one view per IP address per session, regardless of whether the cache is cleared after each play or the user is logged in or out of the site. Given that constraint, however, once the video starts playing, a view is logged whether the video is viewed in part or in full. The video used in testing was public (Blip charges for a "Private" setting), but it is clear from the data that no one else viewed the video. Initially, we thought that Blip was not counting embedded video views, but upon review this is incorrect. As in all settings, Blip counts one view per IP address per session.

Crackle - Basically, once the player starts, Crackle counts a view. Crackle logged "views" for all categories tested, including refresh, >1/2 view, full view and an embedded view. Crackle does not offer a "private" setting, but it can be inferred from the data that no one outside of our testing group viewed the video.

Dailymotion - Video was marked "Private" to prevent others from viewing it via search or by category. No views were logged from refreshing the browser after play started or from embedding the video on another site. DailyMotion does not record views that result from embedded videos.

Howcast - Video was marked "Private" to prevent others from finding it via search or by browsing the site. Refresh, >1/2 and full views were all counted. Howcast counts views from embedded videos separately.

Metacafe - Metacafe informed us that they count a view if 50% of the video was viewed greater than 30 seconds, whichever happens first. However, from our testing, it appears that even multiple full-length views are not counted in full. Communications with admins at the site revealed that views are tracked by IP address, so perhaps even full views in multiple are not actually counted from a single computer. MetaCafe counts a single view that originates from embedded videos. It appears that if multiple views come from the same IP address, just the first is recorded. Metacafe does not provide a private setting, making testing difficult. We discovered that most new videos are featured on a page driven by recency, so we waited until after an initial spike in views the first day to start testing.

Myspace - Video was marked as unlisted to prevent others from viewing it through a search on the website. All tested categories resulted in views counted. Refreshes may have counted because it took approximately half of the video for the page to reload. Myspace counts all views that originate from embedded videos.

Revver - All tested categories resulted in views counted. However, it is important to note that Revver switched their methodology for counting a view in March, whereas previously they had been one of the more stringent in counting views. At that time, the site switched from a view being a completed play to being an initiated play. Revver still captures "completions" in the API data, though completions aren't published publicly. They are the only site in the study that has completions in their API, and this information reflects that the advertisement was viewed. Revver counts views that result from embedded videos.

Sclipo - All tested categories resulted in views counted, including embedded views. Sclipo does not offer a "Private" setting, so this video was live during testing.

Stupidvideos - All tested categories resulted in views counted, including embedded views. Stupidvideos does not offer a "Private" setting, so this video was live during testing. However, there was little to no outside influence on the view count.

Veoh - All tested categories resulted in views counted, including embedded views. Veoh does not offer a "Private" setting, so this video was live during testing. The video was not added to the profile's favorites page, however, and there was little to no outside influence on the view count.

Viddler - Video was marked "Private" to prevent others from finding it via search or by browsing the site. All tested categories resulted in views counted, including embedded views.

Yahoo! Video - Yahoo! does not provide a "Private" setting for videos, so there was no control over views counted for the test. However, there was little to no outside influence on the view count. Despite their former restrictive standards (Yahoo! as of last June did not count embedded or partial views), all categories tested resulted in views counted.

Youtube - Video was marked "Private" to prevent others from viewing it through a search on the website, except during testing. Despite formerly strict standards, all categories tested resulted in a view. We also attempted to "max out" the number of views, with the idea that YouTube might count up to a certain number from the same IP address (i.e. count views up to 100). We executed 130 refreshes (as defined above), all of which were counted. UPDATE: According to one of our prominent users, it is "common knowledge" in the marketing world that YouTube caps views at 200 per IP address.

Most Stringent Sites for Counting Views

Please feel free to republish or quote from this in any form as long as you give us attribution and a link to our homepage.

For more information, contact:
David Burch, Marketing Manager
david@tubemogul.com
510-653-0501