Suppose you have decided to launch a video streaming service to monetize content. One of the things you will need to do is select a solution for video streaming to run your service. The obstacle is that a lot of them are in the market, all offering various features that provide different experiences to viewers and you.
You would probably want your users to like and use your service more often. You would like to provide the best user experience for them. That’s why you need to find the best OTT solution. It should have features that will help you increase customer retention rate on the service. Let’s observe what features can help with that.
Features an IPTV/OTT Solution Should Offer
Group 1: Features for streaming various content formats
Some online video streaming services are capable of delivering VOD (video-on-demand) content, live streams, TV programming, catch-ups, and others. These formats allow people to choose what they want to watch and which format suits them the most. Moreover, various forms give you multiple options for communicating with your viewers.
VOD content is available at any time. Viewers can watch such videos whenever they want, while live streams occur at a certain time. However, you can save them for later viewing.
Online streaming platforms can also allow you to transmit TV programs to customers. As TV programs air at fixed times, some viewers can miss them. But the catch-up feature allows them to watch the programs broadcasted earlier.
As a result, you provide people with the freedom to choose what to watch and when. Viewers are to decide, not adapting to schedule
Group 2: Features for personalization
Features that can provide personalization are a recommendation engine, multiple payment options, several monetization models, subtitles, multi-platform capabilities, and others.
A recommendation engine saves time spent searching for another video to watch. The engine analyzes the viewing history and offers recommendations based on it. People receive videos similar to their interests and don’t waste time looking for what to watch.
A combination of monetization models allows viewers to choose the most suitable option for purchasing. You can have users of different payment opportunities: somebody is willing to pay less, while others don’t pay attention to the price. That’s why you can create different packages at various prices so that people choose what they want.
Multi-platform functionality allows users to consume videos on any device they want. Some people like high-quality pictures on a big screen, while others don’t mind watching content on smartphones and tablets. Multi-platform capabilities allow viewers to choose on which device to view content.
Group 3: Features for enhancing the service
The most powerful tool for enhancing the service is analytics. Tracking OTT analytics can help you understand the performance of your video streaming service. You will clarify what videos people watch the most and the least on your service, how they view them, and who exactly your customers are.
Having such information at your disposal can help you enhance the content you create, identify your audience, optimize marketing campaigns, and boost user experience.
Drawing the Line
The features described above are essential for running a successful video streaming service. When there are so many services in the market, you need to stand out and offer unique experiences to customers. Features of OTT/IPTV solutions can help you with that because they provide engagement and control over content consumption to viewers. As a result, viewers are more satisfied with your service and use it more.
