Preparing for TV's mobile-first future

[Commentary] Based on a series of recent reports on online video usage, television networks could soon be facing a difficult transition to a mobile-first digital world.

It won't be easy, as ad overlays and graphic overlays that show scores or statistics are too small to read. Sports broadcasters will increasingly need to produce two parallel streams: one for big-screen TVs, and one for digital platforms with a mobile-first design. The good news video publishers is that video ad views on mobile devices are growing rapidly. The bad news is that video ads in mobile apps are viewed far less frequently than ads in desktop browsers. Either way, the growth of the mobile web is not likely to abate. As with other types of content, over-the-top video providers will need to learn to think mobile first.