
iWedias J r me Vial takes a look at the OTT landscape
By Contributor
Published: July 1, 2022
iWedia's J r me Vial takes a look at the OTT landscape
target=_blank title=Share on LinkedIn class=share-linkedin>
The world of OTT has been in a state of rapid evolution for the past couple of years, and the Covid-19 pandemic only accelerated this growth as consumers turned to streaming services in huge numbers for entertainment and news during lockdowns.
The first - some may say only area that TV operators must address is their added value to customers. Operators do not necessarily have the brand recognition that Netflix, Amazon, Hulu and other platforms do for video services; they are simply the shop window' for many streaming brands. Only a few provide their own content and even they are fighting an uphill battle, so they need to focus on improving and enriching the quality of the user experience (UX).
First and foremost, quick and simple content aggregation from all platforms is key for the subscribers to an operator's pack. Customers do not want to search for a film or TV show on several individual platforms, so the value for operators here is to enable customers to search across multiple platforms in one pass to find that piece of content. We have seen a few solutions that offer this feature being deployed and they clearly provide a very strong value for the end-users, but once again operators must make sure they spend time on the user interface.
Then, an efficient recommendation engine is also a big value service, if done properly. There has been some very good progress in this field, and a recommendation engine improves over time with growing data. Nonetheless, a user will still get the random and perhaps bizarre recommendations' made by a streaming service! Operators need to use content metadata, live content and customer profile data, and harness technologies such as AI to pinpoint viewing preferences in order to make more accurate recommendations that will be welcomed by the customer.
One of the big attention points for operators currently is that of targeted advertising. While undoubtedly a highly complex technical undertaking, it is a fantastic opportunity for operators to differentiate themselves from international streaming platforms and create new lucrative revenue streams. Again, user experience will be key to make it a solid value-add.
In addition to specific service offerings such as those mentioned above, operators should also make sure they are providing a comfortable, painless user experience (UX) to their customers. Users do not necessarily realise that they are having a good experience, but they certainly know - and act accordingly when it's a bad one. A well-designed interface with easy commands and simple to use search functions will reward operators with engaged and loyal customers.
With the growth in the market for voice assistance, this is an area of opportunity for the operator that pushes its own device into the household to provide a reliable and resilient voice command solution. Technologies are also available today to develop smart UIs that will adapt over time to the user's profile and behaviour.
Similarly, operators that can provide a fluid and seamless journey between platforms on different devices will win loyalty. If a customer pauses an episode of a Netflix show on their home television and later opens the Netflix app on a mobile device, the viewer wants to pick up the show at the scene where it was left - not go back to the start of season one, episode one. Operators need to be able to do this as elegantly as the streaming platforms do.
All these UX elements and value-added services require significant technical integration with the video back-end, which is where specialist integration companies like iWedia come in. The vast complexity of systems needed to deliver a quality OTT service should not be underestimated, so look for companies with global expertise that can help to demystify and simplify it.
What is the future of OTT? People have grown used to multiple platforms, so from that perspective on-demand content is likely to remain strong. Above all, operators should focus on improving and differentiating their customers' experience in order to provide the best possible service.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
07/10/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
12/08/2026
Traditional live sports production has focused on creating the best possible pro...
12/08/2026
FOR-A will showcase a range of broadcast and production products at IBC2026 (Stand 2.B53, Amsterdam RAI, September 11-14), including software-based switching, A...
12/08/2026
The Advanced Media Workflow Association (AMWA) and EBU will host live demonstrations of NMOS BCP-008 Minimum Status Reporting at IBC2026 (September 11-14) on th...
12/08/2026
Dalet has announced Dalet Solution Suites, a portfolio of cloud-native solutions...
12/08/2026
Net Insight has announced that DMC Production Norway has selected its Open Live ...
12/08/2026
Zixi has appointed Alyson Stewart as Senior Director of Sales. Stewart will be responsible for direct sales and partnerships, with a focus on broadcasters, medi...
12/08/2026
LiveU's LU900Q intelligent production unit was deployed as part of the host broadcast operation for the Games in Glasgow (July 23-August 2, 2026). Host broa...
12/08/2026
Disney , ESPN, and Formula E have announced a multi-year deal bringing all Formula E races to Disney and ESPN in the U.S. and to Disney in most international...
12/08/2026
PSSI has launched X-LIVE, a managed service offering dedicated engineering resources and Appear encoding infrastructure for live event signal processing and tra...
12/08/2026
The inaugural MoonPay X Games League Summer Season reached 18.3 million unique live viewers across three stops on ABC and ESPN, a 78.5% increase compared to the...
12/08/2026
BBright will showcase an expanded IP-Gateway at IBC2026, adding support for all RIST profiles to its existing support for MPEG Transport Stream over IP with SMP...
12/08/2026
BBright will demonstrate EBU OGraf animated graphics support in its software-bas...
12/08/2026
Interra Systems will demonstrate its ORION, BATON, BATON Captions, and VEGA solutions at SET Expo 2026 (August 17-20, Distrito Anhembi, S o Paulo) at partner Li...
12/08/2026
DPA Microphones has appointed Raul Contreras as West Coast Regional Sales Manager. In the role, Contreras will oversee sales and customer relationships througho...
12/08/2026
Live spectacles ranging from the Super Bowl and FIFA World Cup to the Oscars and...
12/08/2026
Writer-Director Andrius Bla evi ius and crew attend the premiere of How to Divorce During the War at The Ray Theatre on January 26, 2026, in Park City, UT. (P...
12/08/2026
Enhanced DAW & plug-in control for the UC1, UF8 and UF1
The software that powers SSL's range of control surfaces has just received a major update that d...
12/08/2026
In-line preamp features one-knob EQ
In addition to their range of in-line preamps, Triton Audio recently managed to squeeze a compressor into an enclosure t...
12/08/2026
Captures system audio with or without a DAW
Depending on your setup, capturing system audio in a DAW can be a tedious process, so much so that Arvital Audio...
12/08/2026
2026 NATIONAL NAIDOC AWARDS TO BROADCAST ON NITV LIVE AND DIRECT FROM MPARNTWE
12 August, 2026
Media releases
First Nations excellence will be celebrated l...
12/08/2026
More than six million sports fans stay with SBS for Tour de France and Tour de F...
12/08/2026
Nielsen is cementing Digital Ad Intel as the new go-to currency for digital ad intelligence in Brazil-now with streaming monitoring in the mix.
S o Paulo, Augu...
12/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/08/2026
As Matrox Video celebrates 50 years of trusted innovation, the company will showcase its portfolio of interoperable IP technologies and software-defined innovat...
12/08/2026
SMPTE, the home of media professionals, technologists and engineers, today announced a program of expert-led sessions, professional workshops and networking eve...
12/08/2026
Berklee Announces Full Details for Inaugural Block Party, a Music Festival Next ...
12/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
12/08/2026
Matthews Studio Equipment introduces T-Go Mounting Solutions extreme camera rigging systems, engineered for the most demanding environments in motion picture pr...
12/08/2026
Anton/Bauer, a Videndum brand and the industry leader in mobile power solutions for broadcast and cinematic production, announces that the EDEN Mobile Power Sta...
12/08/2026
TAG Video Systems, the global leader in software-based IP monitoring and multiviewer solutions, today announced a memory usage optimization that lowers the tota...
12/08/2026
Unified Streaming announces Trusted Media, a new solution that enables broadcasters, streaming platforms, and premium content owners to attach verifiable authen...
12/08/2026
Combining intelligent automation, composable business services and user-centric experiences
The media industry is entering a new phase where AI intelligence is...
12/08/2026
DPA Microphones welcomes Raul Contreras as its new West Coast Regional Sales Manager. In this role, Contreras will oversee sales and customer relationships thro...
12/08/2026
Marshall Electronics' first all-weather, all-IP 4K POV camera, the CV574-WP, makes its European debut at IBC 2026 (Stand 10.C11). Built for the elements, th...
12/08/2026
LA JOLLA, CA-Scientists at Scripps Research have discovered that two seemingly unrelated cellular enzymes become locked together during times of stress, simulta...
12/08/2026
Brand-new trailer unveiled as Sky announces SNL UK ticket ballot will open on 14...
12/08/2026
Wednesday 12 August 2026
Sky Sports agrees deal to show Laver Cup from London's O2
Sky Sports has agreed a deal with Trident8 to show all three days of th...
12/08/2026
Wednesday 12 August 2026
Pre-order the new Google Pixel 11 range from today and...
12/08/2026
NVIDIA founder and CEO Jensen Huang is ranked No. 1 on Glassdoor's Best CEOs list for 2026.
In the just-released ranking, recognition is earned directly fr...
11/08/2026
Weekly immersive broadcasts will feature 8K 3D video, a 180-degree field of view...
11/08/2026
By Briana Brady, Social Media Manager, Production Hub
Sports content is having ...
11/08/2026
She addresses why media organizations need more than asset storage, how sports t...
11/08/2026
Remote commentary has improved significantly on these broadcasts
At a clip of ...