Over the past few years, a new category of mobile apps has quietly exploded into a multi-billion dollar business. They’re called \u201cmicro dramas\u201d \u2014 short-form, mobile-first scripted shows designed to be watched vertically on your phone. Think soap opera meets TikTok, complete with secret billionaire romances, disapproving werewolf mothers-in-law, and cliffhangers engineered to keep users tapping. The leading app, ReelShort, made $1.2 billion in consumer spending last year alone.<\/p>\n
On this episode of TechCrunch’s Equity podcast, Rebecca Bellan and TechCrunch senior reporter Amanda Silberling sit down with Henry Soong, founder of Watch Club, who thinks the micro drama industry is still “in its MySpace era.” He has a vision for what the Facebook moment could look like. <\/p>\n
Subscribe to Equity on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Overcast, Spotify and all the casts. You also can follow Equity on X and Threads, at @EquityPod. <\/p>\n
Chapters: <\/p>\n
00:00 Intro <\/p>\n
01:11 Why micro dramas, and why now? <\/p>\n
04:25 What makes Watch Club different <\/p>\n
07:29 The monetization model problem <\/p>\n
18:52 Optimizing for intentionality, not engagement <\/p>\n
24:23 Why Quibby failed (content, product & business model) <\/p>\n
28:22 Defensibility: tech company or studio? <\/p>\n
31:36 AI, the WGA, and the future of storytelling <\/p>\n
33:44 Outro<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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