Getting the most value for your content with OTT platforms

You create content. You might be a production company, or you might be another sort of organisation that owns the rights to something. That could be anything from video marketing materials and how-to videos for a commercial company to sports events or worship leadership.

You may already have routes to an audience, but working through a third party means you are giving the control – and much of the revenue – to them. How much better would it be to have a direct relationship with your audience? And keep all the revenue.

The good news is that, today, it is not difficult to set up your own channel. OTT – over the top – video is a means of sending out a stream of video content on the internet. You can make it look like a conventional television channel, with a mix of live and recorded programmes on a schedule, or you can offer VoD – video on demand, which means you give the viewer a menu of content to watch which is delivered when they want it.

Or you can do both, offering a streaming service that viewers can dip into, backed up with a VoD platform for the most popular content.

What do you need to make it happen? Let’s assume you already have the content, or you would not be looking to get it out to audiences.

You need an OTT content management system (OTT CMS). As the name suggests, this simply keeps track of your content library as it grows. As well as knowing where each item is stored, it will contain metadata, which is the information about the content. This can be quite detailed, and if you want your audience to discover content then it will need to have plenty of details on what the programme contains, who is in it, and more.

You may need to keep track of the intellectual property rights for each piece of content, and arrange the appropriate payments if you do not own the material outright. You probably also need to think about when a programme can be shown. Is it more appropriate at particular times of day? Does it have an end of life date – a service from a house of worship might be available only until the next week’s service is published, for example.

Then you need a means of delivering your content. That means a way of creating and automatically delivering the schedule, and a VoD user interface that makes it easy for consumers to find, choose and view their preferred content on your video streaming platform.

Finally, you need to track your audience and, if appropriate, collect payment from them. The subscriber management application should be much more than purely financial, though. You should know what content each subscriber watches, so you can tailor promotions and marketing to the individual, as well as guiding your overall programme strategy.

If this sounds complicated, then the good news is that PlayBox Technology has a one-stop solution for all of this, and the other things you need to get your service to your audience.

PlayBox is a market leader in playout automation for broadcasters. Automatically sequencing and delivering programmes, trailers, commercials and other elements in a seamless stream is at the core of what we do. We also handle all the underlying video processing, including streaming at up to 4k Ultra HD quality, and reformatting for VoD delivery to smart TVs, computers and mobiles.

Putting the schedule together is a simple drag and drop process. It requires no specialist knowledge and, because it is so quick to do, neither does it demand an army of staff. For start-up live streaming and VoD services, the preparation and management does not need anyone dedicated to it full time.

As for all the rest of the requirements – content management system, digital rights management and so on – PlayBox has a turnkey OTT platform that covers absolutely everything you need. OTT Stream is completely intuitive software that allows you to create a viewing experience carrying your branding and look and feel, implemented consistently across all the devices your subscribers use to access your service.

OTT Stream is secure cloud software, so you can access it from anywhere. You can buy a perpetual licence, or rent it as software-as-a-service, so you tie the costs directly to your revenues.

Delivering your content direct to your audience gives you complete control, reduces your costs (with the help of PlayBox) and puts the power to control your revenues directly in your own hands.