TV misses become mobile hits

Programmes that are not ratings winners on linear channels could have another chance at success on mobile TV.

Aardman Animations, the creators of Angry Kid, which was originally shown on BBC Three, said that while it had not rated well on the digital channel, the animation was its most popular mobile product.

"Because it’s in shortform it didn’t do so well on BBC Three, because it didn’t get scheduled properly. But it’s been a massive hit on mobile,” said Robin Gladman, Aardman’s digital product manager at today’s Broadcast Mobile Congress.

Gladman said that Aardman shows, which include Wallace and Gromit and children’s classic Morph, had achieved up to 10,000 mobile downloads a day last year, with one-minute clips of Angry Kid making up the bulk of that.

Fifty one-minute episodes of the plasticine animation series exist, with Aardman planning another 25 later this year.

Likewise on ITV, celebrity show Love Island, which has been axed by the broadcaster, was also a massive mobile hit.

Melissa Goodwin, ITV’s head of mobile, said the show had managed a 30% ‘conversion to mobile' rate among its TV audience, achieving 1.7 million free ad-funded downloads over its summer run last year.