What Is OTT (Over the Top)? OTT Definition, Examples & Tutorials

In this guide we’re going to cover what OTT is and how you can get started as an OTT content provider. What is OTT? “Over the top” or “OTT” refers to the delivery of film and TV content via the Internet, without requiring users to subscribe to a traditional cable or satellite pay-TV service.

How do OTT services work? An OTT streaming service delivers video through an application that runs on connected devices such as Smart TVs, mobile phones, tablets, computers and set-top boxes. Content owners distribute their programming via a third party IP network (such as the Internet) rather than over a cable or satellite operator’s private network.

How did OTT emerge? The emergence of high speed internet access coupled with the consumer adoption of connected devices (smartphones, tablets and Smart TVs) are driving the growth of OTT services. According to research by Parks Associates , by 2020 more than half of broadband households in the U.S. will have a subscription to at least one over-the-top video service.
 

 

What Is OTT (over The Top)?

Over the top, or OTT, is a term used to refer to content providers that distribute streaming media as a standalone product directly to viewers over the Internet, bypassing telecommunications, multichannel television, and broadcast television platforms that traditionally act as middlemen between content producers and consumers. 

The word “over” in OTT refers to delivery over the top of these traditional intermediaries.

Over-the-top content has become an important component of the video industry as broadband Internet access has become more widely available. OTT refers to the delivery of film and TV content via the internet, without requiring users to subscribe to a traditional cable or satellite pay-TV service like Sky, Virgin Media, or BT.

In other words, instead of receiving TV programs as broadcast signals that enter your home from a rooftop aerial or satellite dish, OTT allows you to stream them via the internet through your broadband connection.

OTT (over The Top) Replacing Traditional Media Distribution

OTT is replacing traditional network television for many viewers, as an increasing number are choosing to watch content on their mobile devices. 

The networks have been slow to embrace these changes, but finally, networks such as ABC, NBC, and CBS have made their shows available on the Internet.

Hulu is one of several sites that stream network shows, but they are all owned by the networks themselves — ABC, NBC, and Fox. Hulu has the advantage over its competition because it streams shows from all three networks.

Hulu has a free version that allows viewing of commercials, but you can upgrade to a commercial-free version for a monthly fee. Netflix is probably the most well-known of the streaming services. It offers a wide variety of films and TV shows.

Netflix began as a DVD rental company before branching into streaming video. Now it produces its own original content including “House of Cards” and “Orange Is the New Black.”

Amazon streaming video is also becoming more popular and offers similar programming to Netflix with many exclusive titles such as “Transparent.” Amazon is available on various devices including Kindle Fire tablets and even some televisions.

OTT (over The Top) Different Types Of OTT Content

In this article, we’re going to talk about OTT and different types of OTT content. In a nutshell, it is quite similar to Netflix. However, Netflix is just one form of OTT content.

There are many more forms of OTT services that you may be subscribing to without even realizing it. When you pay someone with PayPal or Venmo, you’re using an OTT service.

In fact, anytime you use a digital wallet to store your money, you’re using an OTT service — whether that’s PayPal through your computer or Apple Pay on your phone. 

So what do Venmo and Apple Pay have to do with the sharing economy? Both of these apps enable peer-to-peer transactions (i.e., transactions between two individuals without banks or other financial services).

And many companies in the sharing economy leverage peer-to-peer transactions to enable their users to make payments for their services.

Advantages Of Creating OTT Content

With the exponential growth of OTT content, it is clearly not just a fad but the future of entertainment. The growing popularity of OTT content has encouraged various media companies to produce new and original content.

OTT platforms have brought a new concept of on-demand entertainment where viewers can watch their favorite shows whenever they want from wherever they are. This has resulted in a paradigm shift from traditional linear television to OTT platforms like Netflix and Amazon Prime.

Below is a list of some of the benefits for OTT providers:

Engaging Content

OTT platforms focus on creating engaging content that appeals to all many groups. 

Additionally, the convenience provided by these platforms allows users to enjoy the video content at any time of the day which increases the chances for viewers to watch more content.

High ROI

OTT providers usually pay only for what they consume as opposed to traditional television broadcasters who pay fixed rates for broadcasting channels irrespective of viewership or viewership ratings.

Targeted Advertising

OTT providers can use various data points such as user demographics, geographic location, device type, and the kind of content viewed by users to accurately target.

Common Features To Look For In An OTT Platform

It’s important to understand the common features and capabilities of an OTT platform. Below is a list of some of the most common features and why they are essential to a company’s success.

1. A content management system, or CMS, allows users to edit and easily update their video site without knowing how to code or design a website. An intuitive CMS should have a WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) interface that lets you click around and find the settings you need without any training or guidance.
2. E-commerce is a key feature for monetizing your video site with subscription or pay-per-view fees. Look for a platform that supports multiple payment gateways, such as Stripe and PayPal, so that customers can pay by credit card or through their bank accounts.
3. You may also want to look for support for payment plans, coupon codes, and user coupons that can be redeemed at checkout. 
4. An advanced analytics dashboard can help you track your marketing campaigns in real-time, so you can make data-based decisions about improving your content strategy. Video analytics should include playback stats like views.

1. OTT Platform Video Hosting

Video hosting is a very important aspect of your OTT platform. This feature is essential when you plan to scale up the number of users in your business.

You should know that if you decide to use different file formats for your videos, it can become a real challenge to manage them. 

It’s also quite challenging to choose the right video host for your platform, because there are plenty of providers, and each one offers something different.

Therefore, before you start looking for a video host, we suggest you learn more about the most common types of video hosting solutions and choose the one that will help you achieve your goals in the best possible way.

2. OTT Platform Video CMS

The OTT Platform video CMS has the lowest cost of ownership and the best value in live internet broadcasting and on demand video. Our state of the art content management system (CMS) is designed for ease of use.

Our interface is very user friendly and allows you to upload, manage, approve, publish and monetize your content in a single location with one login. 

It is extremely easy to create playlists and add chapters to your videos.

Our system is robust enough to handle large amounts of data and can be used as an enterprise level system by large TV stations, radio stations or sports teams that need to manage several channels at once. 

It is also simple enough for small businesses or individuals who want to stream their events live on the web.

Our OTT Platform Video CMS was built with an emphasis on monetization, so our clients can make money from their content, whether it’s free or paid. 

The video CMS has a series of features that allow users to generate revenue from advertising or pay-per-view subscription models.

Users can insert ads into their videos at various points in the video timeline or before, during or after the playback of a video. 

The system also makes it easy for you to create coupon codes and special offers for your customers. Supported

3. OTT Platform Branded OTT Apps And Websites

The OTT Platform is a complete, end-to-end, fully hosted solution that includes everything you need to have your own branded premium OTT service. The OTT Platform is provided by one of the leading Internet Television companies in the world.

The OTT Platform is a complete, end-to-end, fully hosted solution that includes everything you need to have your own branded premium OTT service. 

The OTT Platform is provided by one of the leading Internet Television companies in the world.

The OTT Platform is a complete, end-to-end, fully hosted solution that includes everything you need to have your own branded premium OTT service. 

The OTT Platform is provided by one of the leading Internet Television companies in the world.

4. OTT Platform Video Monetization

The most common monetization model for OTT platforms is the pay-per-view model. Pay-per-view allows viewers to purchase access to a single event, typically a sports event or concert.

The options for setting up a pay-per-view model on your OTT platform are: 

• Free registration and no credit card required
•  Free registration with a credit card required
• Paid registration (paywall) and no credit card required
• Paid registration (paywall) and credit card required

Most OTT platforms use the “free registration and no credit card required” option for their pay-per-view events. 

This makes it easier for users to complete the signup process by allowing them to enter their personal information without having to enter payment details.

It also makes it easier to complete the checkout process in the future and reduces the number of abandoned carts.

5. OTT Platform Video Apis

Over-the-top video allows consumers to stream high-quality video through low-cost devices like mobile phones, laptops and computers, gaming systems, and set-top boxes.

When you use an API to build your OTT platform, you can launch a streaming service that’s easy for your customers to use and monetize. 

Monetization options include classic ads served at either natural ad breakpoints after a fixed amount of time, or transactional models where viewers can purchase or rent content.

An API is a software intermediary that allows two applications to talk to each other.

It helps you create a seamless online player on your site using your existing video streaming infrastructure.

It also helps you monetize your content by letting you choose from various monetization options including advertising, subscriptions, and rental services.

6. OTT Platform Real-time Analytics

Accessing information in real-time is a must for streaming media providers. Live streaming relies on real-time analytics to optimize the quality of experience (QoE) and manage traffic and capacity.

OTT platforms need access to real-time, actionable data to provide a personalized viewer experience, prevent churn, and monetize content. 

Streaming service providers are demanding real-time visibility into their infrastructure in order to react to changing conditions immediately. 

They want to see the status of their infrastructure from a single dashboard in order to avoid service interruptions. 

With the amount of data that is being generated by the various devices and networks, it can be challenging to maintain visibility into all components of your network.

However, with this access comes responsibility. Real-time analytics reveal information that can be used against you if not properly protected.

7. OTT Platformvideo Player

OTT platforms are revolutionizing the video industry. They are a great way to go directly to your audience and monetize your content.

There are a number of OTT platforms out there today, including Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Chromecast, and Android TV. 

All of these platforms require their own SDKs, which makes cross-platform development quite a challenge.

To help you get started with building an app on multiple OTT platforms, we just released the new Video Player SDK for OTT Platforms. 

This new player SDK leverages the Brightcove Player Native SDK framework and uses the same core video engine used in the native mobile player SDKs for iOS and Android.

Another great feature is that it supports MPEG-DASH with Widevine encryption for DRM license delivery (FairPlay coming soon) without relying on browser plugins such as Silverlight or Flash. 

It also plays back the same HLS content that we’ve come to know and love from Apple devices and services.

8. OTT Platform Social Media Integration

Social media is playing a more significant role in our lives than ever. It has become a go-to place for both entertainment and communication.

With the OTT industry already becoming so popular, it has become a great opportunity to merge the two even more with social media integration. 

OTT platforms have started to use social media integration as an alternative to traditional advertising and marketing methods.

The development of social media has allowed for the creation of social networking sites that are incredibly popular, such as Facebook and Twitter. 

The integration of OTT platforms with these sites will allow for better user engagement through the sharing of content that can be viewed on these various OTT platforms.

Social media sites have also allowed for the creation of online communities. 

These communities have made it possible for people to connect with others who share similar interests, creating a more efficient way to communicate with one another.

Many individuals throughout the world, including those who live in different countries, can create profiles on these sites that allow them to interact with each other through comments, messages, and posts in order to develop new relationships. 

The integration of these two technologies into the OTT platform has also helped companies reduce their costs. 

Companies do not need to spend money on advertising and marketing when they can use these sites instead. 

9. OTT Platform Built-in Marketing Tools

Today, the best platforms are in fact OTT Platforms. Not only do they provide their customers with a new way of reaching an audience, but they also give them the means to make this happen without the need for any knowledge or technical skills.

OTT marketing tools have become an integral part of the ecosystem of digital marketing. You’re already missing out on so much if you don’t use them.

Here are some benefits that you get from using ott platforms’ built-in tools.

Marketing is a major challenge for any OTT platform. In order to attract new users and retain them, you need to have some effective marketing strategies in place. 

The problem is that many OTT platforms tend to forget about the tools they have at their disposal in the very software that powers their OTT service, such as: 

• Push Notifications.
• In-app messages or announcements.
• Email Marketing.
• Content Recommendation Engine.
• Analytics/Behavioral Targeting.
• Chatbots.

What Is The Purpose Of OTT (over The Top)?

The service is provided by a third party and has no relation to the Internet Service Providers (ISPs) or telecommunication companies that provide the internet access itself. As such, it is still necessary to pay your ISP in order to access the internet.

OTT refers to any content that is provided over the top of this connection, without interference from the ISP, which would not usually have any control over it. 

OTT services are particularly popular in developing countries, where a lack of infrastructure prevents a large proportion of the population from accessing cable networks.

The use of mobile phones in these areas is widespread, and many people view media content on their phones instead of on TVs.

1. Purpose Of OTT Commercial-free TV Viewing Experience

The purpose of OTT commercial-free TV viewing experience is to provide the consumers with content that isn’t available on traditional TV channels. 

Consumers can choose from a variety of content that is available on various platforms.

The content includes everything from movies to music, news, sports, and entertainment. 

Consumers can choose from a variety of content that are available on various platforms. The content includes everything from movies to music, news, sports and entertainment.

2. Purpose Of OTT Unlimited Entertainment

The OTT market is projected to reach $94.43 billion by 2023. That’s a lot of money, and it shows that more and more people are getting their entertainment online.

The OTT market is growing because there are so many options now when it comes to getting online entertainment.

Streaming services are taking over from traditional TV options, such as cable packages, and it’s easy to see why. 

Services like Netflix and Hulu offer a wide range of content for very affordable prices, making these services much better value for money than traditional TV packages.

But with so many OTT services competing for your attention, how do you know which one is best?

3. Purpose Of Ottbroadcasting Live Content

OTT is the new buzzword in broadcasting. The first OTT services were simply VOD platforms that offered pre-recorded films, series, and documentaries to viewers on demand. 

These have their uses and are very popular, but they don’t really offer anything new.

The next generation of OTT services are called live streaming platforms and these offer much more. 

Why Live Streaming? Live streaming is a game-changer. When you stream live content via the Internet, you can broadcast events as they happen, with no delay.

This opens up a whole range of possibilities for broadcasters who want to engage with their audience in real-time. Live streaming allows broadcasters to: 

1. Start a conversation with their audience by broadcasting an event as it happens
2. Interact with their audience through social media posts that can be integrated into the live stream
3. Offer multiple camera angles – so viewers can decide what they want to watch
4. Broadcast content that isn’t suitable for traditional TV channels – such as niche interest areas like gaming or sport
5. Use geo-blocking technology to limit access to certain countries/regions

Steps To Creating A Successful OTT Platform

The rapid growth of the OTT market is not surprising, after all, it offers users a whole new world of high-quality content.

What is surprising is how many businesses are trying to develop their own OTT platform. With so much competition on the market, it’s vital to have a solid plan in place.

There’s a lot of work that goes into building an app or platform, so check out our latest eBook – “Steps to Creating a Successful OTT Platform”. You can download your copy here: http://bit.ly/2u3jxXW 

In this eBook you will find the answers to the questions:

• What is an OTT Platform? 
• What are the main challenges in building a successful OTT platform? 
• How to create a business strategy for your platform? 
• How to monetize your platform? 
• What are the most common mistakes made by businesses when launching an OTT platform and how do you avoid them?

1. Successful OTT Platform: Choose A Popular Niche

OTT (Over-The-Top) streaming services are still a relatively new idea in the media landscape.

In the last decade, we have seen a transition from traditional TV to these new streaming services like Netflix, Hulu and Amazon. If you think about it, it’s really an astounding shift considering that many of us have been watching TV on cable for most of our lives.

In fact, a recent survey showed that 73% of Americans view Netflix as their primary source for TV entertainment. This is an incredible statistic when you consider that no one had even heard of Netflix only 15 years ago.

There’s another trend we are seeing that is also quite surprising: Companies are now establishing their own OTT platforms to promote themselves and provide additional value to their target market. 

ESPN has its own service called ESPN+, Disney is planning to launch its own service in 2019, and HBO is expanding its current offerings with HBO Now and HBO Go.

What does this mean for your business? It means that there are many ways you can use an OTT platform to drive revenue and engage with your market. In this article, we will discuss several ways that you can use OTT technology for your own business.

2. Successful OTT Platform: Choose The Right Monetization Model

Choosing the right monetization model is extremely important for OTT platforms. The wrong strategy can cost you valuable time and money.

Here are the most popular options: 

Subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) services, like Netflix and Hulu, charge a monthly fee for unlimited access to their content library. They tend to be ad-free.

SVOD services are very popular because they offer more control to viewers than other types of OTT monetization models. 

Ad-supported video-on-demand (AVOD) services, like Crackle and PlutoTV, offer free streaming videos that are supported by commercials.

They give advertisers an opportunity to place ads in front of very specific audiences since they’re able to customize content based on user data. 

Transactional video-on-demand (TVOD) services charge viewers a one-time fee for renting or buying premium content.

This allows publishers to generate revenue from older or less popular content.

3. Successful OTT Platform: Create Your Video Website

OTT platform has a very clear target audience. The more specific the target audience, the easier it is to design and implement a product/service that speaks directly to this audience. 

Take Netflix, for example. 

Netflix started by offering DVDs by mail. They then moved into on-demand streaming and they have now expanded into creating their own content. 

But at every stage in their development, they have always remained focused on serving entertainment lovers who enjoy movies and TV shows.

All of the content you find on Netflix has been selected to appeal to this audience. This is why you don’t find any educational or training videos on Netflix, nor do you find any short-form content like news clips or viral videos there.

Netflix has become very successful because it knows what its audience wants and it delivers this content in an easy-to-use and affordable way.

4. Successful OTT Platform: Build A Branded OTT App

In this article, we have revealed what OTT platforms are, and how you can  use them with only drag-and-drop tools. 

As you know, there are many ways to promote your business online: you can use paid advertising on Google Ads or Facebook Ads, you can promote your e-commerce store through social media, or you can create a blog and write articles like this one.

But there’s another way that can help you market your business effectively — creating an OTT platform. 

5. Successful OTT Platform: Distribute Your Content To Smart TVs and Other Devices

The challenge that most content owners face today is the need to be on the OTT platform, but not having the necessary bandwidth or expertise to distribute their content across different devices. Platforms like Netflix and Amazon Prime have made it super easy for viewers to access their favorite shows and movies at home.

This has led to a revolution in the media and entertainment industry with many content owners now looking for similar platforms to distribute their content. While there are a number of OTT platforms available today, most of them cater to only a few devices.

For some, you can access their content only on your computer while others are specific to mobile phones or set-top boxes. But the challenge that most content owners face today is the need to be on the OTT platform, but not having the necessary bandwidth or expertise to distribute their content across different devices.

6. Successful OTT Platforms: Include In-app Purchases And Payment Gateways

Every successful OTT platform includes in-app purchases and payment gateways. 

Netflix, the largest on-demand video service in the world, offers a one-month free trial to new subscribers, who then need to pay a monthly subscription fee to continue watching their favorite shows.

Payment integration is a key component of any OTT platform. It helps you monetize your content and generate revenue from your users.

There are a couple of ways to integrate payments into your platform: 

• In-app payments: Integrating an in-app purchase SDK like Paymentwall makes it easy for your users to pay for subscriptions or premium content from within your app or website. 
• Web payments: Using web payments, users can easily complete transactions directly on your site without having to download an app or register. This option is great for content creators and aggregators who want to sell their products directly. 
• White label solutions: With white label solutions like Paymentwall’s widget, you can customize the payment process with your own branding and design.

7. Successful OTT Platform: Analyze User Behavior Insights

Over-the-Top (OTT), or streaming content, has become a massive industry over the last decade. In fact, it is estimated that by 2022, over 2 billion people will subscribe to OTT services.

At such a high volume of subscribers, OTT services need to analyze their user behavior insights in order to provide an optimal service and ensure retention. Here are three ways successful OTT platforms use user behavior insights to stay on top.

Define User Personas: The first step in an OTT platform’s success is understanding what type of users want the service and how they want to use it. This can be accomplished through A/B testing, surveys, and focus groups.

By definition, user personas represent a typical buyer or user of a product or service; they are fictional characters who represent different market segments that make up your target audience. 

Knowing your user personas will allow you to make decisions based on their needs and desires as opposed to your assumptions. 

Monitor User Experience: Once you know how your customers prefer to use your product or service, you then need to monitor their interactions with it.

Are they using it in the way you intended? Are there any technical issues with the platform that may cause friction for users? 

Determining these things can give your users a better experience.

8. Successful OTT Platform: Promote Your Content On Social Media

OTT is a catchall term that refers to digital content delivered via mobile devices rather than a traditional cable box. 

The main benefit of OTT is that it allows consumers to watch their favorite shows whenever they want, whether they’re at home or on the go.

You don’t have to be an expert in the world of online video to capitalize on the popularity of OTT. 

Just check out social media platforms like Instagram and Facebook to see what kind of content goes viral and how people are engaging with it.

If you’re able to figure out what’s popular with your audience, you can use that knowledge to promote your content as well. 

Consider using Facebook live as a way to engage with fans.

Some people prefer watching videos on their mobile devices, so if you have interesting content to share (like a behind-the-scenes look at your business), you could post it directly on Facebook for everyone to see by inviting them to join you via Facebook live.

Issues With Creating An OTT Platform (and How To Overcome Them)

In the next part of this article, we’ll discuss the major issues and challenges faced by OTT platforms. We will also talk about how to overcome them. Let’s go!

By this time, you should understand what an OTT (Over-The-Top) platform is. Maybe you’ve already used one as well.

But have you ever thought about how difficult it is to create an OTT platform? 

It is not easy to build an OTT platform, especially if you are a newbie and don’t know the technicalities of software development (but it is not impossible!). 

There are several issues that can cause significant problems for your business.

Let us discuss some of them in this article.

Content protection is a big issue. Content protection has become a very serious issue for online service providers due to piracy and illegal distribution of digital content. 

You will need to implement strong security measures like DRM technology on your platform to avoid such issues.

If you fail to do this, then there will be many problems in protecting your content from illegal distribution over the internet. 

It can also lead to significant financial losses for your business as well.

As a result, it becomes necessary to implement DRM technology on your OTT platform so that no one can copy

Issues With Creating An OTT Platform: Dealing With Massive Competition

OTTs are things like the online streaming industry as it offers a plethora of services to consumers. It provides you with all entertainment content in one place.

When you think about OTTs, you are likely to think about watching your favorite movie or TV shows. 

OTTs are the best choice for those who have cancelled their cable subscriptions but still want to watch their favorite shows online.

OTT services can be accessed through devices such as smartphones, tablets, smart TVs, and gaming consoles. 

Although OTT sounds like a magical solution to all your entertainment needs, there are some issues associated with creating an OTT platform that you should know about.

As we mentioned before, several different OTT platforms are available in the market today. 

Netflix is the most popular name that comes to mind when we think about OTT platforms.

However, there are other well-known names such as Amazon Prime Video and Hulu which offer a wide range of services to their customers. 

When you create an OTT platform, you will have to deal with massive competition from existing companies in the market who already hold a strong customer base.

Achieving market dominance will be impossible when you’re competing with such brands.

Issues With Creating An OTT Platform: Dealing With Subscription Fatigue

In the last few years, we have seen many OTT providers entering the market.

We have also seen many of them close. The reasons for this are varied, but there are some common issues that need to be addressed before you begin to develop an OTT platform.

We live in a world where customers want everything they can get their hands on at the lowest possible price. 

This has resulted in customers subscribing to multiple services without giving much thought to how much they are paying for each service.

This is known as subscription fatigue and it is a real problem for mobile app developers who develop OTT platforms. 

Consider that a customer is paying for Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV+, and NOW TV every month and then you launch your own streaming service with a monthly fee of $5 per month.

This customer may not find your service worth it since they already have four other services that they pay for every month. 

If you want to avoid subscription fatigue, it is best if you have an attractive enough offer that will make customers consider dropping one of their existing subscriptions for your own service.

 

Issues With Creating An OTT Platform: Misunderstanding Your Audience

When it comes to creating an OTT platform, there’s no doubt that your goal is to make money. But it’s not just a matter of putting together a service and charging people to use it.

A lot of thought needs to go into the types of services you choose to offer and how you plan on delivering them. If you get one thing wrong, it could mean the difference between success and failure for your OTT platform.

One of the biggest issues companies face when launching their own OTT service is correctly identifying their target audience.

If you don’t know who you’re targeting, it’s going to be difficult to market your service effectively. For example, if your service is geared toward seniors, then focusing on television shows might not be as effective as offering fitness classes or cooking demonstrations.

Having an OTT platform is all well and good, but if you don’t have proper support systems in place, you’re likely to encounter problems with user retention. This includes things such as poor customer service or not having an easy way for users to cancel their subscriptions (if they want to).

4. Issues With Creating An OTT Platform: Using The Wrong Technology

OTT (Over the Top) streaming services offer many channels of entertainment to consumers. The most popular are Netflix and Hulu, which are both subscription-based.

But OTT content is also on broadcast television, with TV networks like CBS, ABC, FOX, and NBC offering streaming packages to subscribers. OTT is a very competitive market, so it’s essential to choose the right technology for the job.

It’s no good having a great app that doesn’t work well or doesn’t have enough content to make it competitive in this crowded market. If you’re creating an OTT platform, you’ll need to start by finding out what technology your streaming service provider uses.

You might have an edge if you can create an app for their existing platform. But even then, your app will need to be fully functional and able to compete with other apps from the same provider.

Issues With Creating An OTT Platform: Poor User Experience

A poor user experience can be caused by several factors, and this is what you need to avoid.

A slow loading time is the first sign of a bad user experience.

When users face difficulties as they wait for content to load, they may not choose to come back to your OTT platform. To avoid this, you need to improve the streaming speed of your OTT platform and provide a seamless experience to users.

Complicated steps. Users don’t want to jump through hoops just to access the content they want.

The registration process should be quick and easy, and it shouldn’t ask for too many details from users. This can help you attract more users without any problem.

Consumers want an OTT platform with an intuitive interface that allows them to browse easily and quickly find movies or shows they are interested in watching.

If the design of your OTT platform is confusing, it can prevent users from accessing your platform regularly.

OTT Software To Build And Host Your Own OTT Platform

With the explosive growth of online video, it’s easy to forget that many people are still watching television. But 55% of US adults watch TV every month.

In fact, the most popular platforms for online video are actually live television and OTT services like Netflix.

The most important thing about OTT is that it’s changing the way we watch television.

Not only can you watch shows on your smartphone or tablet, but with apps like Sling TV and PlayStation Vue, users can even watch live linear channels on their devices, including ESPN, Fox News, and CNN.

Now, it’s easier than ever to start an OTT service and grow your audience by creating your own platform from scratch. The services you’ll use include Amazon Web Services (AWS), Google Cloud Platform (GCP), Microsoft Azure, Box, and others….

Now we are going to review some of the companies that can help you build your own OTT platform.

1. Uscreen

Uscreen is for an avid video creators who are interested in exploring the video monetization world. Uscreen can help you with video monetization!

Features

Uscreen’s mission is to simplify video monetization and help you earn money from videos. They do so by providing a complete OTT platform for video content providers.

Their all-in-one platform enables you to create your own branded video streaming service, manage and monetize your content. Uscreen’s platform allows you to sell subscriptions, rentals, downloads and much more with a customizable storefront.

Customers are able to run their own VOD service as well as monetize their existing video library on YouTube, Vimeo, Facebook and other platforms with OTT. 

Their technology allows you to upload your videos in any format including 4K and we will automatically transcode them for any device. You can also upload DRM protected videos which we can deliver to your customers.

They have a fully functional API which allows 3rd party developers to build apps on top of our platform. Additionally they have pre-built integrations with leading marketing tools such as Mailchimp, Zaiper and more.

Pros

The Uscreen platform has a wide range of features and tools. These are just some of the most notable ones: 

Subscription Models: As a video streaming platform, Uscreen provides several subscription models to match your needs. You can also set up recurring billing, so you don’t have to worry about charging customers every month.

Integration Options: Uscreen gives you access to a variety of integrations. You can integrate with marketing tools (e.g., Facebook, Google Analytics), membership plugins (e.g., MemberPress), and payment systems (e.g. PayPal). In addition, you can connect to Zapier and create your own integrations using the API service.

Content Delivery Network (CDN): CDNs provide a fast way to deliver content across the globe and reduce lags between videos loading in different regions/locations.

Built-in Payment Gateway: Your clients can make payments using their credit cards using the built-in gateway system or through PayPal, Apple Pay, and Stripe services.

2. Dacast

Dacast has built a video platform for the professional. They provide the tools to embed and stream live and on-demand video.

The Dacast online video platform includes everything you need: 

• Manage users, groups, and permissions with their user management system 
• Customize the look of your live or on-demand video player
• Track audience engagement with statistics on plays, completion rates, and more 

Dacast is one of the leading video hosting platforms and online video solutions for businesses. They offer a wide range of customizable streaming services to our clients that include: 

• Live Video Streaming 
• On-Demand Video Hosting 
• Video Monetization (Pay-Per-View) 
• White label video hosting 

They are an ideal fit for professional broadcasters, businesses, churches, and government agencies who want to stream live or host prerecorded video content.

Dacast offers affordable pricing plans with no hidden fees or long-term contracts. Dacast is one of the leading video hosting platforms and online video solutions for businesses.

Dacast offers affordable pricing plans with no hidden fees or long-term contracts.

Features

Dacast offers a wide range of features to help you succeed with online video streaming. Here are the top reasons to choose Dacast as your video hosting platform.

1. Streaming Features on a Budget Dacast has the best live streaming features available at the lowest price on the market. For $35/month, you can set up your own channel and stream live events to any device or browser.
2. A free trial is also available for testing out the platform before committing. 
3. Dacast Pros can help you choose a streaming provider, build a streaming plan, or produce, broadcast, or market your event.

Pros

With Dacast Pros, you can stream to the world with the most advanced live streaming solution available. From beginner to expert, our Pro plan offers everything you need to grow your business and expand your reach.

Their dedicated customer support team is here for you 24/7 via email, chat, or phone. They are always ready to help you get started or answer any questions that come up along the way.

Monetize your content through our pay-per-view system, subscriptions and coupons, or ads. Pay-per-view is a robust monetization tool that allows viewers to access your content for a one-time fee.

Subscriptions allow viewers unlimited access to your content in exchange for a monthly fee. Coupons are a great way to give away freebies or promote special events. Ads are a great way to monetize your content by displaying advertisements before, during, or after your events.

With advanced features, you get access to all of our advanced features such as ultra-low latency streaming with WebRTC, mobile apps on iOS and Android, native HLS and MPEG-DASH ingest protocols, video on demand and more!

3. Muvi

Muvi is a new way to watch movies on your computer, smartphone and tablet. From the latest blockbusters to classic and independent films, Muvi gives you instant, unlimited access to over 20,000 hours of entertainment for free.

Muvi is free. There are no subscription or per-title fees.

You get unlimited access to thousands of hours of entertainment, including new and classic movies from major Hollywood studios and independent film producers from around the world.

You can stream muvi on your computer, smartphone and tablet at home or on the go.

Muvi is the Netflix for everyone. It’s a platform where users can watch thousands of movies, TV shows, cartoons and more.

With Muvi you can: 

– Watch your favorite movies and shows on your phone, tablet or TV

 – Search movies and watch trailers 

– Discover amazing content that you’ll love 

– Create your watchlist to save movies to watch later

Features

As Muvi is an end-to-end cloud platform, the features it offers are quite vast. To keep things simple and easy to understand we have divided the entire feature set into the following categories: Content Management System, User Management System, Monetization Engine, Portal Engine and Business Analytics.

The Content Management System of Muvi allows you to manage all your content under one roof – be it Videos, Music or even Live TV Channels. Load your own content and start streaming on any device in a few clicks.

The User Management System of Muvi allows you to manage users, subscribers and more. You can create multiple subscription plans for your viewers and monetize your content with PPV, Subscription or Ads.

Pros

Muvi Pros Muvi Pro is a high-quality video hosting platform, with the most powerful tools for growing and monetizing your audience. So no matter what you want to do – build a brand, create an online course, or just make awesome videos – Muvi Pro is built to help you do it.

Customize your site with our easy-to-use tools. No coding required.

Enjoy unlimited bandwidth and storage for your videos and files. Have full control over how and when your content gets monetized.

Make more money by selling subscriptions, charging viewers per video, or setting up paywalls.

OTT (over The Top) – Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently Asked Questions: 

What is OTT? 

OTT or ‘Over the Top’ is a term used to refer to content services that are delivered via the Internet, without requiring users to subscribe to a traditional cable or satellite pay-TV service. OTT services have gained in popularity as consumers have become more and more accustomed to accessing media on demand, often using devices like smartphones and tablets that are connected to the internet.

The same consumer behaviour can be seen with today’s music consumers – people who want to listen when and where they want, and expect it to be easy. Spotify is an example of an OTT service which enables users worldwide access to an amazing library of music and podcasts, all on demand.

Spotify is available both as a free ad-supported version and as a premium tier with ad-free listening, in multiple markets across the globe.

What Is OTT (over The Top) – Wrapping Up

OTT or Over The Top is a content delivery system for TV shows and movies over the internet without the need of a cable provider or even a television. You can stream and watch your favorite content from anywhere in the world on any device you choose.

OTT has become extremely popular in recent years because of its affordability and convenience, especially with the rise of Netflix and other streaming services. The future of OTT seems to be going in a positive direction, with more people choosing it as an alternative to traditional cable companies like Comcast or Charter Spectrum.

Considering that most of these services are less expensive than cable, you can save some money. This article has been written to provide an introduction to OTT, its advantages and disadvantages, and how it works.