OTT (Over the Top) platforms are the talk of the town as the ever-growing industry of the 21st century. Streaming giants like Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, etc. are dominating the user’s daily watch hours. With such success, one must wonder how they do it?
The answer to this question is that OTT platforms invest in tech to continuously improve the viewer’s experience. When the pandemic began, people were stuck at home with an internet connection looking for some entertainment. OTT platforms had to become one of the picks of these users and the one thing they capitalized on is the type of technology users need.
In this article, we will look at some aspects of the OTT platform and how investment in specific tech can bring a great change. If you’re looking to stay up to date on streaming news, guides, and more, you can check out StreamingRant.
This tech improvement is not just happening in the streaming giants, but the regional ones as well like ALTBalaji, MX Player, and more. Before we dive into the depth, let’s get a hold of the science behind the OTT platforms and the need for investment in this area.
The Tech Of OTT Platforms
When it comes to the tech part of the OTT platform, it usually consists of the following:
- Media Servers that store and provide high-quality content.
- Metadata Servers that are Content Management Systems (CMSs) which control the necessary detail of the videos. Details like descriptions, titles, runtime, genre, etc. all come under these servers.
- Advertising Servers that store and govern ads for websites and apps.
- Subscription Management Systems that handle the data of paid subscribers like login credentials, package descriptions, etc.
- Analytics Services that report the analytics and performance of the site, powered by Google, Nielsen, ComScore, etc.
- The best platforms have a consistent check on these 5 tech pointers, the lack of which can be the cause of the downfall of the streaming service.
Why Tech Issues Are Targeted For Improvement
OTT platforms have many aspects that can attract new customers. There is the type of content, the convenience, and the categorization that brings in subscribers. But what empowers it all is tech.
In the past, we have seen OTT platforms bringing up issues that caused subscribers to look the other way. Some of these deal breakers may be the following:
- Excessive loading time leaves the person staring at the buffering circle go round and round.
- Poor Design that gives a cheap look to the app.
- High latency slows up the process of streaming.
- The content was not organized properly which results in wrong recommendations and suggestions from the platform.
If this faulty tech persists, the OTT platform will lose customers no matter how good the content may be. It will ruin the whole fun of streaming and, following this loss of viewership, the production houses will stop featuring their content on the streaming site.
It is a fact that many production houses wanted to take control of how good their content looked to the public. That is why there is a rise in launches of regional OTT platforms.
The Kind Of Improvements People Want
1. Uninterrupted Streaming Experience
One great improvement of the OTT platforms is the ability to stream content in areas where internet connections lag. The platform recognizes the type of video quality to deliver based on internet connection so that the experience stays uninterrupted.
It is a major factor in streaming, especially for remote areas. If you have an OTT platform that is region-specific, it must be programmed to switch quality when needed. People who spend time on the buffering page are more likely to disappear from the site than wait till the content loads.
2. Multi-channel Experience
You may know about services like Hulu and Disney Plus that are more than just On-Demand streaming services. If people want to jump from cable to OTT platforms, they need a service that gives live TV as well. At the same time, the users demand compatibility.
Streaming services will no longer be limited to just smartphones and laptops, as OTT apps will spread through all smart devices. It is reported that although millennials prefer their smartphones and tablets for content streaming, there is the usage of over 60 million people of TV sets, estimated for the next five years. That is why the streaming service app needs to be as versatile as possible.
3. No Hangs, No Crashes
Some of us have witnessed how streaming services have lagged and crashed during big premieres like HBO Max on Game of Thrones releases. That has caused many users to turn away in the past. That is why the app should be able to handle massive traffic and avoid unexpected crashes.
The number of subscribers and streamers vigorously grows across the world. Also, people will not be focused on having multiple subscriptions and would want to have one that is flawless. It is true without a doubt that OTT viewers will surpass pay-tv subscribers.
4. Improved Personalization
One of the reasons Netflix is the giant of the industry is because of how much it has perfected personalization. Their recommendations and suggestions list are spot-on and intrigue the user to choose faster. Netflix has an algorithm that even updates the cover picture of the feature based on your likes and dislikes.
Some services are ad-supported platforms which also helps them target their audience properly. Nobody likes ads but it helps the service improve its recommendation list and only provides you relevant content. This is another area that OTT tech can influence.
Conclusion
OTT platforms will continue to dominate the internet age and one fine example comes from Netflix. It takes a complete customer-centric approach to improvement and changes. Many OTT platforms can follow the same practices in improving their services through which the investment in tech will surely pay off.
