Interactive live videos are recognized by most on mobile apps like YouTube, TikTok and Facebook. Users receive alerts that a person or group they follow is live. That gives the user an opportunity to react with chat or emojis with other audience members, and the streamer interacts back in real-time.
This is a neat feature that lets someone from South Korea, as an example, stream live while someone from Ohio watches and interacts. This ultimately connects people from disparate geographies or cultures with a similar interest through one app.
And it should not be to anyone’s surprise that 83% of Gen Z consumers say they are familiar with interactive live video, according Agora’s commissioned study. Maybe one would expect that percentage to be even a little higher with Gen Z being more familiar with technology than some of the older generations?
Anyways, when asked to identify the types of mobile apps that deliver live video features in the study, the Gen Z consumers listed social media apps YouTube, TikTok, Facebook and Instagram as the top four. Twitch and Discord were identified by half of the consumers, but those seem to target more of a specific niche compared to the others.
"To no one's surprise, entertainment and social media are leading the way on interactive live video features," said Tony Zhao, co-founder and CEO of Agora. "They have mainstreamed interactivity in live streaming, with Gen Z now expecting it across all live video experiences."
Here’s the rub. Agora's study also found that Gen Z believes many apps underuse interactive live video with entertainment apps and social apps being the top two categories. Likely not surprising because those are the two most used categories with apps like Facebook, YouTube and TikTok, creating more of a demand for underused features.
But, three are several other app categories Gen Z thinks underuse interactive live video, like healthcare, education and shopping apps like Amazon. For example, with shopping apps like Amazon, Gen Z wants to interact with sellers to learn more about product features. This also gives sellers an opportunity to promote their brand and get a decent following. Similar interactivity would enhance experiences in other industries as well and create greater engagement between users and providers.
"Given the value of interactive live streaming to younger audiences, other mobile app categories, from education to healthcare, need to consider integrating these features," said Zhao.
Edited by
Erik Linask
