Is this due to: a) Using less video? b) Using video more efficiency?
April 2017:
Average bytes per page by content type.
Top 100 = 3kB
Top 1000 = 91kB
All = 118 kB
Video request per page:
Top 100 = 0 98%; 1-2 2%.
Top 1000 = 0: 95%; 1-2: 3%; 3-4: 1%.
All = 0: 97%; 1-2: 1%
Video transfer size per page:
Top 100 = 0: 98%; 201-250k: 2%;
Top 1000 = 0: 95%; 1-50K: 1%.
All = 0: 97%; 1,351-1,400K: 1%
Please also see my other discussion on video for mobile web best practice.
Thanks, Andy
Top 100; April 2017
Top 1000
All
I think option B is the answer: efficiency. To be more specific, I think it comes down to autoplay. HTTP Archive just visits a page and records the page load without clicking around. Autoplay videos would be captured on those visits, while click-to-play would not. Autoplaying is wasteful for everyone involved because a page visit does not always demonstrate intent to watch. One notable exception is YouTube, where visiting a watch page is definitely intent to watch. Keep in mind that only home pages are crawled by HTTP Archive. So my theory is the top sites choose not to autoplay in order to keep bounce rates low and conversions high.
Am .04.2017, 16:26 Uhr, schrieb Rick Viscomi
httparchive@discoursemail.com:
I think option B is the answer: efficiency. To be more specific, I think
it comes down to autoplay. HTTP Archive just visits a page and records
the page load without clicking around. Autoplay videos would be captured
on those visits, while click-to-play would not. Autoplaying is wasteful
for everyone involved because a page visit does not always demonstrate
intent to watch. One notable exception is YouTube, where visiting a
watch page is definitely intent to watch. Keep in mind that only home
pages are crawled by HTTP Archive. So my theory is the top sites choose
not to autoplay in order to keep bounce rates low and conversions high.
+1 on this and kudos to Google for changing the behaviour of embedded
behaviour so that they don’t autoplay automatically.
Charlie
Rick, Thanks for the excellent theory/explanation.
I believe autoplay is frowned on for accessibility reasons, which may also be a reason top sites shun it.
I am also told that until recently Chrome on Android didn’t allow autoplay.
Andy
Am .04.2017, 17:52 Uhr, schrieb Andy_Favell
httparchive@discoursemail.com:
Rick, Thanks for the excellent theory/explanation.
I believe autoplay is frowned on for accessibility reasons, which may
also be a reason top sites shun it.
To be honest I don’t think that accessibility is that high up any
developer’s agenda. However, HTML5 means that most sites will have
reasonable accessibility. But I think the trend towards SPA (single page
apps) is the new Flash.
Charlie
I am wary of going off topic, but your comment is interesting, Charlie. Does that mean that SPA content has similar accessibility issues as Flash content?
Andy
