Quibi hit 1.7 million downloads in its first week, according to the company’s CEO, Meg Whitman.
Quibi – or ‘quick bites’ – is a streaming service dedicated to short-form, easy to digest content you can pick up whenever you have a few minutes to kill. The app’s library covers pretty much every genre you can think of and features a few famous names, including Chrissy Teigen and Game of Thrones’ Sophie Turner.
Related: 13 classic shows you need to watch on iPlayer
The streaming service has reported 1.7 million downloads since its launch last Monday, despite its launch falling during an unfortunate time for an on-the-go, mobile streaming app. However, it doesn’t seem as though the ongoing pandemic has had a significant effect on download figures.
“It turns out people have in-between moments at home”, Meg Whitman told CNBC business and trading show Squawk on the Street this week. “We don’t actually think it hurt us”.
Download numbers have surpassed expectations, according to Whitman. And, while a lot of these sign-ups may be thanks to the 90-day free trial period, 80% of subscribers who started watching a show followed it through to the end of the first episode.
The company has also decided to accelerate plans to allow users to cast content from their mobile devices to TVs due to Covid-19.
Read our Quibi review
Trusted Reviews’ George Storr didn’t seem too impressed with the new streaming service. In his review, he wrote:
“At launch, Quibi’s library is almost 50-shows strong, but after the free trial elapses it costs £7.99/m. That’s more than Disney Plus, Apple TV Plus and Netflix’s Basic subscription tier.
“Quibi’s image quality is up to 1080p streaming right now with no Ultra HD. In my experience, app picture quality can vary from moment to moment, depending on the network you’re using.
“While Quibi says it’ll add new shows each week, with its comparatively small library and no TV app, it’s hard to argue that it’s currently good value … In our minds it’s worth giving Quibi a gander with its 90-day free trial, but there’s little compelling reason to continue once it’s over.”
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
