Maybe Jeffrey Katzenberg was just ahead of his time.

This year, a small industry of apps has gained momentum in the market by offering scripted, short-form entertainment for mobile consumption. It’s similar to the kind of content that Hollywood mogul’s Quibi adventure failed to deliver in 2020.

Several media outlets have recently noted the rise of apps for “vertical series” (also known as “short” or “micro” or “mini” dramas). These are movie-length films divided into dozens of short episodes, often two minutes or less each, designed to be viewed on your phone in a 16:9 aspect ratio.

The format started gaining popularity in China around 2020, but it was ReelShort – founded by Silicon Valley-based Crazy Maple Studios, whose investors include China’s COL Group, in 2022 – that introduced the rest of the world to vertical series with its TikTok viral show “Fated to My Forbidden Alpha”. From there, a host of vertical series platforms sprang up, including DramaBox, ShortTV, and Ullu (mainly from China) to launch their own small, phone-friendly shows.