User experience on mobile video appreciation: How to engross users and to enhance their enjoyment in watching mobile video clips

In the past few years consumers have enjoyed consuming video content on a growing number of devices including the traditional television, personal computers, mobile phone and tablets. Each device has its own technical attributes and associated consumption characteristics. This research examines the differential effects of user experience on engagement during video consumption in the mobile and desktop environments. We have experimented with different situations related to the genre, the sequence of playing, the extent of interruption, the timing of the interruption, and length of the video clips. Our model was quantitatively tested, with 270 users taking part in a between subject experiment. In the mobile environment, our results provide evidence that sensory experience is a significant factor for enjoyment and engagement with the video, while emotional response is not. The reverse is true for the desktop environment. Learning curve factors work differently in the two environments. User enjoyment and engagement are significantly moderated by learning curve factors in the mobile environment only. The result is robust as it is true for both previous learning (usage experience with the device), and on-the-go experience (sequencing of video clips). Attention span only affects engagement and enjoyment in the desktop environment. Outside interruption only affects engagement and enjoyment in the mobile environment. Our findings can inform commercial practices on the video design and user interface, and also enhance our understanding of the contextual dependency of the theoretical concept of engagement in mobile entertainment. (C) 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.