Mobile ad platform Opera Mediaworks is launching a $1m (£632,000) Short Form Video Fund for brands and agencies to experiment with new approaches to mobile-first video ads, aiming to encourage shorter videos with more impact.

The Fund will offer 20 brands $50,000 each for the production and placement of mobile video campaigns in premium, in-app native video environments powered by Opera’s AdColony Instant-Play HD video technology.

Each qualifying brand will receive $10,000 to spend on the creative and $40,000 worth of media spend. The maximum length of videos produced is 15 seconds. Opera says it will give the money to brands in each of eight key sectors, including Finance, Automotive, Entertainment, and Banking & Finance.

Opera commercial director for video, EMEA, Robert Cootes, told Mobile Marketing:
“A lot of people are still using 30-second TV spots across mobile, which is a long time to engage with someone on such a personal device. The is our attempt to prove to them that they need to rethink their strategy, not just do a cut-down version of the 30-second spot, which most of them are not even doing anyway, but rethink their messaging and the way they create video across mobile.”

While the maximum video length is 15 seconds, Cootes said the company is encouraging brands to go for a maximum of six seconds, based on research from Vine which shows that 6-second videos are four times more effective than longer form video on mobile.

All Fund participants will work hand-in-hand with the Opera Mediaworks creative team to create campaigns according to established best practices for mobile video. Upon launch, the campaigns will be tracked, measured and evaluated for impact and effectiveness, and each campaign will be part of a research study for short form video on mobile.

The Fund is one of the major video-focused initiatives stemming from Opera’s acquisition of AdColony in July 2014. AdColony’s Instant-Play HD video technology is fully integrated into Opera Mediaworks’ core mobile advertising platform, and together the combined companies are actively implementing AdColony-powered video products across their shared portfolio of advertiser and publisher offerings.