Attention vs. Fandom: Why Entertainment Needs a New Framework for Understanding Engagement
By Ben Woods of MIDiA Research Blog
The attention economy has become the de facto framework for measuring loyalty in the entertainment industry. However, not all attention is equal. While an hour spent scrolling videos on TikTok may compete with an hour spent playing a £70 video game, the depth, value and quality of that engagement are fundamentally different.
To unpack those differences, a clear distinction must be made: attention is not the same as fandom.
Take micro-dramas. Apps like ReelShort and Dramabox are clearly serving a demand. Millions of viewers are consuming vertical micro-dramas every day. However, what these platforms are optimising for is disposable attention rather than long-lasting fandom. These apps work like TikTok. Not because they are vertical, but because the goal is to keep viewers moving from one video to the next.
The stories are interchangeable. Users are not meant to remember the shows, only to keep scrolling from episode to episode.
This behaviour is different from platforms designed to build fandom. YouTube’s model is creator-first. It encourages audiences to return to the same personalities, build relationships, and participate in communities around them. Attention still matters, but it is a by-product of nurturing loyalty.
For platforms, creators, and entertainment companies, having a framework to distinguish these types of engagement is crucial.
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The following framework splits engagement into three distinct tiers:
- Disposable attention: scroll, consume, forget
- Habitual attention: return to the same creators
- Devotional attention: fandom built around characters and worlds
Franchises like Game of Thrones, Stranger Things, and The Boys thrive on devotional attention. They turn attention into an emotional investment, and an emotional investment into monetization. There are no signs that micro-drama apps are going to produce a scalable IP of this magnitude. This is to be expected because micro-drama apps are not designed to monetize fandom.
However, this does not mean that traditional entertainment companies like Disney and Netflix should not explore the potential of vertical video. If the goal is to monetise fandom, then their short-form content should be positioned to deepen worlds and serve fan communities. They should not mimic the disposable mechanics of micro-drama apps.
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Disney’s recent experiment suggests it understands the distinction. Its short-form series Locker Diaries features characters from existing IP, including ZOMBIES, Descendants, and Phineas and Ferb. Distributed across Disney+, YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok, the series uses social-first storytelling to deepen fandom and engagement, and ultimately drive consumers towards Disney+.
Entertainment has always been an attention business. However, increasingly, the real strategic question is: what kind of attention are we trying to build? Only by answering this question can companies turn engagement into the type of returns they actually want.
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