Selecting Online Videos from Graphics, Text, and View Counts: The Moderation of Popularity Bandwagons
Little is known about the counteracting influences of different recommending information in various presentation modes on Internet users' selection of content. Considering user-contributed video selection, this study examines how content introductions supplied by contributors (as video descriptions), system-aggregated user popularity signals, and a hybrid of system- and user-generated introductionthe thumbnail previewcontribute to or compete with bandwagon effects on video viewing selections. Based on data from a video-sharing site, the analysis detects bandwagon effects from incidental aggregated user responses: When a video displays a high view count, its popularity over others snowballs further. The bandwagon effect is moderated by thumbnail use regardless of textual introductions, and by text when no thumbnail appears.
bandwagon effect user-generated videos informational modality imagery domination inter-modal counteraction content uncertainty popularity cues