How Quibi Lost $100,000 Per Min? ($2.6B)
Whether opening books, beers or buttons, plenty of fun can be started and finished within ten minutes. Unfortunately, Quibi followed this premise, but was led off the profitability plank, rather than to treasured success.
Whether failure’s footsteps stumble into orange jumpsuits or red profit margins, the first question upon the doomed destination’s arrival is “How did I get here.”
For Quibi, there are multiple answers to why it failed the test of time. As most college students trying to snatch victory from the jaws of last night’s alcohol-fueled defeat know, the best choice is “All of the above.”
First of all, the brainchilds of this operation are (soon to be were) Meg Whitman and Jeff Katzenberg. Both of these individuals are not strangers to business success Whitman advanced Ebay’s presence to be a leading online entity for years and although Katzenberg’s overall track record is shaky, he was a key figure in Disney’s renaissance in the 1990s.
While those accomplishments eternalize desirable resumes, the equally permanent mantra “Past performance is not indicative of future results” shares its scowled visage away from finance lectures once in a while. Whitman is 64 and Katzenberg is 69 (nice). While being aged in the sixties doesn’t automatically equate to being out of touch with what a targeted audience of younger watchers who feature notoriously low attention spans, it can certainly increase the likelihood of that happening.
Acclaimed, veteran features writer Benjamin Wallace’s investigative article for Vulture “Is Anyone Watching Quibi?” confirmed generational disconnect suspicions.
“When I ask Whitman what TV shows she watches, she responds, ‘I’m not sure I’d classify myself as an entertainment enthusiast.’” Wallace writes. “But any particular shows she likes? “Grant,’ she offered. ‘On the History Channel. It’s about President Grant.’”
Although bushy beards are popular among millennials as part of No-Shave November, Ulysses S. Grant fails to march on the cutting edge of coolness in 2020. To the surprise of few viewers, Katzenberg doesn’t seem to be “hip” beyond hip pain either.
.”In enthusing about what a show could mean for Quibi, Katzenberg would repeatedly invoke the same handful of musty touchstones — America’s Funniest Home Videos, Siskel and Ebert, and Jane Fonda’s exercise tapes,” Wallace writes. “When Gal Gadot [leading actress best known for her role as Wonder Woman] came to the offices and delivered an impassioned speech about wanting to elevate the voices of girls and women, Katzenberg wondered aloud whether she might become the new Jane Fonda and do a workout series for Quibi.”
This report certainly isn’t music to investors’ ears. Hall and Oates (a band Katzenberg and Whitman are far more likely to be familiar with than their target audience)’s “Out of Touch” ranks above “You Make My Dreams Come True” on the hierarchy of this situation’s prehistoric playlist plastered in pessimism.
Failing an unaided recall test for a site that aims to compete with Youtube and Netflix? Womp Womp Womp.
Another facet of failure that deserves the same sullen soundtrack is Quibi’s lack of advertising to demographic-appropriate avenues. The project’s premise clearly lends itself to a core 18-to-35 demographic, extending a touch further or lower. According to Pew research published in 2018, approximately 88 percent of 18- to 29-year-olds indicate that they use any form of social media. The usage statistic dips, but stays strong at 78 percent among those ages 30 to 49. Despite these statistics screaming at businesses to fully leverage social media platforms, Quibi advertisements didn’t reach TikTok, Instagram, Twitter or Facebook.
In fact, Quibi’s magnum opus resonated with the strength of a mouse’s whimper. A strange, confusing Super Bowl ad that cost $5.6 million for 30 seconds that was broadcasted to an estimated 102 million people, was seen by the vast majority of users as a food commercial.
Following the misguided money trail intensifies the recipe for business disaster. Each show at one point cost $100,000 per minute to make. The exhaustive cast linked to Quibi was tremendous. Talents included Lebron, Jennifer Lopez, Tracy Morgan, Demi Lovato, Reese Witherspoon, The Rock, Kevin Hart, John Travolta, Trevor Noah and Usher, among many other prominent entertainers.
Cost of Quibi's Failure: $100,000 Per Minute
How Quibi Lost $100,000 Per Min? ($2.6B)
#Quibi #Netflix #failure