Video growth became something to shout about in 2018
By Sean Maher
A Christmas tragedy, one embarrassing royal wardrobe malfunction and some very colourful encounters on the tennis court were amongst the most streamed videos across Oovvuu’s global network in 2018.
The Oovvuu Top 20 Most Streamed report compiles and ranks video views from Oovvuu’s growing network of publishing partners, which reached over 200 million viewers across Australia, India, Africa, Europe and North America in 2018.
The most streamed story globally last year was the shocking footage of the Indonesian pop band Seventeen being swept away by the Sunda Strait tsunami on December 22. The tragedy claimed the lives of all but one band member, along with almost 500 people.
Serena Williams’ stunning tirade against chair umpire Carlos Ramos at the US Open also caught the attention of global audiences in a big way, with videos of the incident making it to the 2nd and 12th spots on the top 20.
2018 also saw the wedding of the decade dominate world headlines, when actress Meghan Markle wed Prince Harry in a star-studded May ceremony. Unfortunately, it was not the wedding, but a rather embarrassing clothing tag hanging from Meghan’s red Self Portrait dress during an October visit to Tonga that got the most eyeballs – taking the footage to 3rd place in the top 20.
Meanwhile, Will Ferrell’s comical “are you a witch or a vampire?” post-match interview with Roger Federer at the Australian Open hit the number 4 spot on the list, kicking off what was to be a colourful year for tennis.
Top light-news performers globally included Banksy’s jaw dropping ‘self-destructing painting’ stunt, which came in at 10th spot - and young fans going completely bonkers over Meghan and Harry during their Royal visit to the Australian outback town of Dubbo (18th spot).
Other stories brought heartbreak during the year. A total of 43 people lost their lives when the Morandi Bridge in Italy gave way on 14 August, with video of the collapse becoming the 13th most watched video of the year.
However, when you consider what the public chose to watch, 2018 was really a news year dominated by miracles. The nail-biting saga of the Thai boys trapped in a flooded cave (20th spot) had one of the year’s most positive endings when all boys were pulled to safety in an incredible search and rescue operation.
Another good news story arrived in October, when two Russian astronauts miraculously survived after their rocket failed spectacularly on take-off.
Footage of two men catching a toddler that fell from a 5th floor apartment was the fifth highest streamed video in 2018, while another miracle ending came in November, when a Fly Jamaica plane skidded off the runway in Georgetown, Guyana and stopped just short of going over a cliff – that footage was the 17th most streamed video of the year.
Other hair-raising airport scenes included a plane taking off – and narrowly missing a collision with a van on a Missouri runway. The incident occurred in August and was the 19th most streamed video last year.
The Top 20 Most Streamed comprises content from Oovvuu’s network of content providers, including BBC News, AFP, Reuters, DeutscheWelle, Press Association, Sports News Television, Bang Showbiz and ITN.
These videos are matched via AI to articles created by journalists in Oovvuu’s global publisher network, including SevenWest Australia, Media 24 Africa, Russ Media Europe and digital mastheads across India.
The full list:
1. Shocking moment tsunami causes stage collapse
2. Osaka claims U.S. Open title after Serena meltdown
3. Duchess of Sussex wows in red dress - with a label hanging from it
4. Ferrell's comical post-match interview
5. Two men save child falling from fifth floor of apartment
6. Meghan joined by mother Doria at Kensington Palace cookbook reception
7. 'Yellow vest' protests: Tensions flare in Paris
8. Huge iceberg threatens tiny Greenland village
9. Debris covers Indonesian streets in aftermath of tsunami
10. Banksy painting self-destructs right after sale
11. Rocket carrying two astronauts fails mid-air
12. "I am not a racist" Aussie cartoonist on Serena Williams
13. Moment of Italian bridge collapse
14. 'One of a kind' tomb found in Egypt
15. Donald Trump boast gets laugh at UN
16. NASA's InSight spacecraft touches down on Mars
17. Fly Jamaica passenger calls emergency landing a ‘miracle’
18. Young fan hugs Harry and Meghan on their arrival in Dubbo
19. Plane seconds away from colliding with van on runway
20. Thai Cave Rescue: 'No kid has cave dived like this before'
Oovvuu mission is to embed a contextually-relevant video in every article in the world and tell trusted news to a billion people by matching broadcasters and publishers with AI.
More than 100 broadcasters and publishers including The BBC, Bloomberg, Associated Press, Reuters, The Press Association and more use Oovvuu to deliver their video to audiences across 143 countries every day.
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