In the early days, movies and other audio and video were displayed in theatre and television. Due to the technology that has been developing, it has become easily accessible at home with the help of VCD, DVD, Blu-rays, and disc rentals. Later cable Tv brought the content through the fibre optic and coaxial cables, then Direct-to-Home (DTH) technology made it more straightforward to transfer the content through the Satellite and Dish connectivity.
Finally the kingmaker of video distribution platform “video on demand'' arrived, it’s a far advanced technology when compared with the previous video distribution generation. Video on demand makes it more convenient to watch video content like movies, series, educational courses, etc through the internet by online streaming or video-on-demand services. Unlike traditional media, video on demand users can watch the content anytime and anywhere they want.
Video on demand is entirely different from other video distribution platforms where the users can access the content from different sectors like education, media, yoga, sports, spirituality, etc. Before a decade you didn’t hear the word “video on demand” but now they are ruling our entire world and the major part of our daily lifestyle. In the pandemic situation, movies are released on OTT platforms, educational courses are taken at VOD platforms, sports games are streamed over the live streaming platform, events and meetings are also conducted on live streaming, etc.
Initially, film producers are totally against the OTT platform but COVID-19 breaks the complete wall, where the producers come forward to release their film on the OTT platform. The main benefits of releasing the movie on VOD are to get a global audience and to reduce the financial burden.
How to Build a Lucrative VOD platform
While launching your own VOD platform, you need to provide it on both websites and mobile applications. OTT devices that can bypass the traditional cable and go to the internet, such as Apple TV, Android Tv, Roku, Chromecast, Amazon fire strike, etc. The following topics help you to create your own VOD platform.
Content plan
The content plays a major role in the VOD platform where the VOD products are totally different for different content categories. If you are launching an OTT platform then you need to provide content on all genres so you can get all types of genre audiences. What type of content and when you place the content are going to glue in your platform is very important where it may be short or long form content. For the Education VOD platform, you need to upload the content for all topics and all sets of students.
Choose a business plan and monetization model.
Depending on the category of your product, the business plan can be varied. If you are concentrating on multiple markets or launching your platform at a global level then you need to provide the content in multiple languages. You can generate more revenue by selecting suitable monetization models for your platform. For an e-learning platform, you can provide a course-wise subscription, but in the OTT platform it is completely different, you need to give subscription plans on a monthly, bi-yearly, or yearly basis. Freemium helps you to give the free video with a time limit so that users who like the content will continue with the subscription. Many companies think increasing the content will result in increasing the number of users but it is not true, you can also provide less good content which also increases the customer. While targeting the global level, you need to choose suitable transaction platforms like Google pay, Phonepe, Paypal, Mobikwik, etc.
Distribution management
Content Delivery Network helps to reduce the website loading delay by reducing the physical distance between the server and the user. Many companies fail on the end-user support, it is not just replying to their problems like payment failed, forget the password, etc. You need to be on social media for better customer support, if you don’t have it then you reach the 3rd party. Geo-blocking helps to distribute the content in which country you own the copyrights and license.
Technology to be implemented
The content should be protected from copyrights and DRM and AES encryption as a security system to enable the restriction for protecting unauthorized access of content. The right video streaming protocols, streaming video server, and website architecture help you to launch the product without any kind of lag and runs in a smoother way. The following technologies are essential to make a profitable platform.
- Good Media converter
- Video streaming protocols
- Stable storage
- Good network connectivity
- High load of the server
- High bandwidth
- Security
Promote your live streaming website
Nowadays, it isn’t enough to have a video streaming website alone, you need to give the same importance to promote your product. You can also collaborate with influencers to promote the product and also ask them to put the reviews on their social media. Approach the top bloggers to make a blog about your platform which helps you to increase the ranking on search engines. Conducting events at the international or local level helps to promote your product and you can provide sponsorship for leading sports events.
Test your product before launch
Before launching the product you need to test both the website and mobile application, from those results you have to overlook the severe problems that lead to your product failing. If you directly launch the product, later you can identify the error which will create bad intentions on the user circle. Some of the tests that should be conducted on your platform.
- Test automation
- Usability testing
- Functional testing
- Load and stress testing
- Configuration and compatibility testing
- End-to-end testing
- Integration testing
After launching the product you must efficiently engage with customers. If they figure out any issue, you need to provide an instant solution for that. You can get customer feedback through surveys, social media reviews, live chats, analyst reports of your website, etc. If you can’t provide a perfect product as you like, don’t lose your hope or stay there itself, try to approach the professional who will provide a fair and instant solution.