Get shorty:

Downsize your viewing schedule with new snackable mini-shows, says Samuel Fishwick

THE TV schedule is a “lunchbox problem”: how do you pack a healthy TV diet into a finite space, and still make room for enjoyment? There are your five-a-week essentials: Poldark and The Handmaid’s Tale take up an hour at the same time, the same place every week, and are best watched in your own home at 9pm on Sunday.

But it can be difficult to clear an hour. The alternative is downsizing. The new content buzzword is “snackable”, meaning travel-sized mini shows which you can watch on your tablet or mobile — and therefore in the queue for a coffee or to escape from your commute. Love Island is the perfect way to forget you are on the Central line — just download before leaving the house.

“Short form shows allow the audience to consume a well-rounded entertainme n t ex p e r i e n c e in a way that is uniquely snackable and can easily be consumed on-the-go or while on a break at work,” explains Luke Hyams, head of YouTube Originals for Europe, Middle East and Africa.

This week, the subscription service YouTube Premium launched in the UK, offering short form shows including Bad Internet, Paranormal Action Squad and Fruit Ninja (based on the mobile phone game), all between five and 20 minutes long.

The launch of Instagram’s IGTV this week means more content for when you’re on-the-go: a feature that will allow users to post up to 60 minutes of video, and as little as five.

And the appetite is growing: 47 per cent of all mobile-video viewing time