Reasons Why Broadcasters Are Integrating OTT Into Their Distribution Strategy
With the growth of mobile device users and the internet becoming more accessible, global content consumption has steeply risen in the past couple of years. There are currently more than 82 million households in America streaming content each month. However, there has been a sea change in how people consume content over time. According to a report, the number of people using over- the- top streaming services in America has grown by 20% since January 2020. Evidently, OTT streaming services are growing rapidly, so adding streaming to your company’s content delivery strategy is essential if you want to maximize viewership.
As mentioned above, digital devices are becoming more popular for their ability to enable access to news and entertainment. Over-the-top streaming services deliver many types of content on-demand, including live events. Viewers can access the streaming platform from any location with an internet connection that is stable and fast, and receive news and other live events as they happen. A plethora of streaming services is available globally, with some of the most popular being Hulu and Netflix. Not much surprisingly, today many households have a minimum of one streaming service. Some even use three to four services. In case you wish to grow your consumer base and maximize your revenue, OTT is the way to go.
It’s also worth noting here that advertising-based video-on-demand (AVOD) is among the most popular business models that prevail in the over-the-top streaming industry. According to a report, the total OTT ad spend was $81.9 billion in 2021. Numerous advertisers decide on their ad spending based on how well their products match what viewers might be interested in seeing through AVOD. We provide white label OTT platform
Advertisers love OTT because it offers better user engagement and more information for highly informed consumer targeting.
Advertisers can adjust the frequency of their ads according to users’ viewing habits, such as “binge-watching,” which is when viewers consume a lot of content back-to-back, say, 3-4 or even more episodes of a series in one go. These ad campaigns can target viewers who stream over a prolonged period of time. Advertisers increasingly targeting binge watchers is an important reason to include OTT in your broadcasting strategy. Your advertisers will likely continue to buy your air time if they see binge-watchers returning to your shows regularly.
However, it’s essential to be aware of your target audience and what they expect to see in a good over- the- top streaming service. Once you have identified your target audience, create a marketing plan that targets them. Before we delve any deeper, let’s discuss the basics.
What is OTT?
Any online content provider offering ott streaming media as a standalone product is considered an “over-the top” media service. This term is often used to describe video-on-demand services but can also be applied to audio streaming and messaging services.
OTT services bypass traditional media distribution channels like cable television providers or telecommunications networks. You can access the entire service as long as you have an internet connection, either via a local or mobile network.
OTT services are usually monetized through paid subscriptions. However, there are exceptions. Some OTT platforms also monetize through advertising or in-app purchases. We are ott service providers in India
Advantages of OTT
According to a report by Allied Market Research, the worth of the OTT market was pegged at $121.61 billion in 2019, which is likely to become $1.039 trillion by 2027. This shows that consumers love OTT content. And here are some of the reasons why OTT content is so much more popular than traditional options.
- Streaming services offer high-quality content at a low price: Many streaming services are considered an affordable alternative to traditional cable plans. Subscriptions are becoming cheaper. Even if you are only going to view a small portion of the content, that’s still a fair price.
- Original content: Recently, OTT providers such as Netflix and Amazon Prime began producing original content exclusively through their services. Exclusive streaming licenses are also available for previously televised content on platforms like Disney+ and HBO Max.
- Multi-device compatibility: Earlier, cable television was only available to those who had a TV set. Today, we can access OTT content on a variety of devices. Every account holder can access the same OTT content from a gaming console, smartphone, smart TV, or tablet.
Why are broadcasters Integrating OTT into their distribution strategy
Marketers must follow their audience. This is the only way to reach them. For instance, a large chunk of the present-day audience isn’t using traditional broadcast TV anymore. They are shifting to OTT for video and audio streaming apart from game streaming and messaging needs. By sticking to traditional broadcasting, and neglecting OTT, you will only miss out on the chance to reach your complete audience base.
However, this doesn’t mean that you should completely abandon broadcasting platforms. A bi-pronged content strategy would be more effective than focusing on a single platform.
But what do we mean by a bi-pronged strategy? By a bi-pronged strategy, we mean integrating OTT with broadcast TV so as to increase reach.
Here are some of the most important benefits of integrating OTT with the broadcast.
- To have a wider audience
Audiences who use broadcast services might not use as many OTT services as others. Also, consumers that primarily use OTT platforms to entertain themselves tend not to use broadcasting. With both OTT and broadcast in your strategy, you won’t need to worry about potential leads being lost as you are targeting both the types of audience.
However, this doesn’t mean that you should completely abandon broadcasting platforms. A bi-pronged content strategy would be more effective than focusing on a single platform.
But what do we mean by a bi-pronged strategy? By a bi-pronged strategy, we mean integrating OTT with broadcast TV so as to increase reach.
Here are some of the most important benefits of integrating OTT with the broadcast.
Increased exposure
Increased exposure is a benefit for both brand awareness and sales-driving campaigns. Your brand will be more well-known and remembered if it is more frequently exposed to the members of your target audience. This effect can be achieved by distributing your ads across multiple channels. It also reduces the risk of ad fatigue.
- Enjoy the unique benefits of both platforms
Both broadcast service providers and OTT services earn significantly through ads. By having both in your kitty, you can appeal to a plethora of businesses willing to advertise their products and services. Broadcast advertisements allow businesses to expand their reach and expose the brand to new customers. They can choose to educate the audience and make them more familiar with their products. OTT ads, on the other hand, work better when it’s about getting people to take action because they are viewing premium content, and are more engaged.
Both broadcast and OTT have their own benefits. By combining them, you increase your reach, improve your demand among advertisers, and earn a higher viewership.
Steps to integrate OTT into your broadcast strategy
It is essential that you plan the right content to deliver over OTT and broadcast TV after you have decided that both are perfectly right options for the fulfillment of your goals. These three steps will help you make your integrated strategy a success.
Identify your target audience
It is important to do research on your target market before you decide on integrating OTT into your content delivery strategy. Just study your target market, and try to identify what programs they are likely to be interested in, which viewing devices they prefer, as well as what time of day they tend to consume media. You should combine all of this information to figure out if you really need an OTT platform to boost your viewership.
Also, take a comprehensive approach while identifying the channels and programs your customers prefer. You can segment your customers into different groups to see which platforms and programs are most popular among different segments. This will allow you to deliver more targeted content that would grab the attention of your audience and persuade the customers to take action. This planning stage is important to ensure that you reach the right audience as your customers have diverse interests and fall within a wide demographic range.
- Create a cohesive goal across both platforms
No matter how diverse your target audience or platforms may be, your strategy must focus on one common goal. And your goal should be to get more people onboard. This goal should reflect in all the actions you take. This will ensure that your efforts yield the kind of results you want to see.
OTT platforms have great analytics tools that you can use for more detailed data about your audience’s behavior. As a result, you will be able to compare the results on both platforms. With insight into which ads and content get the most engagement, you will also be able to make adjustments and changes wherever necessary.
Take your content to where your audience is
It’s important to research your audience and measure how you are reaching your goals across broadcast and OTT platforms. To ensure that you reach a wider audience, it’s imperative to focus equally on both the content delivery channels. Remember, the goal of integrating OTT with broadcast is to take your content to where your audience is. While broadcast will help you cater to stay- at-home people and kids, OTT will address the needs of consumers that are always on the go. Analyze your mistakes, learn from them, and improvize accordingly.
You can also refine your approach by:
—Removing broadcast areas or platforms that get low engagement
—Limiting OTT ads per viewer to reduce the risk of ad fatigue.
Endnote
The content market is huge and highly competitive. If you want to thrive in it, you must ensure that you reach your audience where they are most active and spend the most time. A multi-channel approach (Combining OTT with broadcast TV) is the best solution here. It is highly effective and encourages engagement in a diverse audience.
Mogi’s Proprietary Video Tech & White Label OTT
Mogi’s Video Tech solutions are available end-to-end (Video Transcoding + Video Player + Mogi Streaming Engine (Multi-CDN delivery) + DRM + Video Analytics) or you can use individual products from the entire suite like just the Video Transcoding. Mogi also provides white-label end-to-end plug n play solutions for OTT and Edtech Platforms, with Web, Android and iOS apps as well as a dedicated CMS for OTT and LMS for EdTech.
One of the best individual products we have is our Transcoding Architecture, which is a unique cluster-based process, does the transcoding within 30% of the content length. The transcoding architecture’s result includes a highly compressed video of up to 50% with no loss in quality, and if you choose quality enhancement, a 40% compression with the enhanced video quality.
The pricing for Transcoding is very competitive as well, and along with it you get a highly compressed output with the same or higher quality. This means not only is your contractual pricing is low due to competitive pricing, but your bandwidth consumption also reduces, and user experiences increase multifold. It’s a win-win for all of us (Users, Clients, Mogi).