Research data released by Omdia shows that micro-short dramas have become the fastest-growing content form of online videos. The average daily viewing time of users on mobile devices has surpassed mainstream global streaming media platforms such as Netflix and Disney+, and global market revenue is growing rapidly.Global micro-short drama revenue has reached US$11 billion in 2025, and Omdia expects to further grow to US$14 billion by the end of 2026, of which markets outside China will contribute US$3 billion.
As the largest international market for micro-short dramas, the United States will account for 50% of the market outside China in 2026, reaching US$1.5 billion, demonstrating the strong momentum of global expansion of micro-short dramas.
Micro-short dramas are characterized by 1-2 minutes per episode, vertical screen design, and mobile terminal as the core scene. The core audience is women aged 25-45. The content is mainly disseminated through platforms such as YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok. Its usage intensity on mobile terminals far exceeds that of mainstream streaming media.
In the fourth quarter of 2025, the average daily viewing time of users of micro-short drama application ReelShort was 35.7 minutes, significantly exceeding Netflix (24.8 minutes), Amazon Prime Video (26.9 minutes), and Disney+ (23.0 minutes).
Although ReelShort only has 1.1 million monthly active users, which is far lower than Netflix’s 12 million, high participation has become its core competitiveness.
Omdia pointed out that the current core advantage of micro-short dramas is not the size of users, but the strong ability to compete for users’ attention.
Overall, micro-short dramas have been upgraded from niche content to the core driving force of mobile video interaction and are profoundly reshaping the global mobile video consumption pattern.