This is possibly the most common and undoubtedly one of the most important abbreviations that you might have ever heard of. It is, of course, one of the most used terms in almost the entire world. Ott application development
It is not the end here. OOT is out there to kick TV cables off their preferred video streaming choice position. And you know what? There is a very high possibility that may already be using it.
But first things, you first need to understand the meaning of OTT apps.
TYPES OF OTT SERVICES IN THE MARKET PRESENTLY
Following are the kinds of OTT services that are presently available in the market.
- Video
- Audio
- VOIP
- Messaging
Out of these four kinds of OTT services mentioned above, the type that has surfaced itself on the very front foot is the Video OTT segment. Additionally, this segment of focus in our today’s article. We shall discuss how this technology can help you and your business in the time to come.
One partial reason for us to bring this topic is its growing market size. If you look at the share of contribution this technology is providing to the entertainment industry, you will be amazed.
OTT Market Share
The OTT market has been growing off the charts, especially since the Netflix revolution. And with no doubt, we can state that this market is continuously evolving. This market is an answer to how movie streaming apps are redefining entertainment industry.
The following statistics will help you sense the extent of its dominance:
- Digiday states that there are over 200 OTT providers in the United States
- eMarketer states that in 2019, there were 182 million OTT subscription video service users in the United States
- Almost half of the OTT users that are above 18 years use at least one OTT service
- Multichannel predicts global OTT revenues to reach $129 billion by 2023.
OTT vs VOD
Commonly, you can get confused between the two terms, especially since both of them work around on-demand video at their core. Also, little do people know that OTT is a subset of VOD. The core is that OTT works only with an internet connection. On the other hand, VOD requires either a satellite or an internet to work.
OTT AVOD vs SVOD
One basic difference between SVOD and AVOD is a difference of business models. SVOD (Subscription Video on Demand) is a model where users get an access to video containing after they make a payment of a pre-defined fee every month or at a fixed time range. AVOD (Ad-Supported Video on Demand) is an entirely free application. It does not charge any charge from the users to have an access to the videos. The only catch is that it makes the users sit through ads.
Now, we shall be discussing about the features of Over the Top (OTT) mobile applications
You Can Also Check Peer To Peer Application
Features of OTT Video Apps
Multilingual ContentIn order to reach a wider audience in different demographic areas and expand your business beyond geographical borders, it is of supreme importance that you add video content in more regional and different languages, besides English. To give you an instance, with this one very important move, Netflix was able to bag an addition of over a million users, with an increase in 150 million plus video streaming hours.
- Search
An option to explore or search is a must have for any OTT streaming platform. This option must be designed in a way that it works for all age groups. Additionally, you should try to include as many genre options in the search drop-down menu as possible.
- User Profile
Needless to say, this one feature is a no-brainer. Your OTT application must come with a user profile option. This feature give the user an option to manage and personalise their panel of the OTT application. The can set the content they want to watch, the preferred payment option, and suggestions based on the user’s viewing history.
Additionally, if you wish to follow the strategy of Netflix of adding more than one user in the application, have multiple screens where each user is provided their set of features and an option to customize them as per the user’s convenience.
- Watch list
Another very important feature of an OTT video streaming application will be the Watch list feature. Using this, the users will be given a flexibility to add titles that they would wish to watch at a later moment.
One way to get users on this functionality of the application is through a notification mechanism that will keep on reminding them to watch a particular title.
- Social Features
If asked from a well-aware OTT app development organization, they will let you know how social features are an essential part for elevating the whole OTT experience. These features helps in making an application sharable and achieving a consistent active user target.
Users should be provided an option to share their view activity with their network on social media. Additionally, they must be a social media log in provision to make the app on-boarding super easy.
- Screen Mirroring
A very reputed entertainment app development company lays a fact that to increase the count of user engagement, it will be better if a company’s users can access the application on screens other than their mobile, i.e., their Television, Desktop, or any other bigger screen. To implement this feature and off an OTT app for both mobile and TV devices, there are two ways:
- The screen mirroring option with AirPlay. This is an alternative to Google Cast and works only with Apple TV and other iOS linked applications.
- By Google Cast SDK
- In-App Purchases
Last, but not at all the least feature for an OTT application is in-app purchases. Through this feature, the application owner will find it very easy and seamless to transfer money to the application users.
This feature becomes all the more must-have if you choose to opt for SVOD or TVOD monetization, for instance, how the most used OTT applications like Netflix and Hulu have.
OTT MONETIZATION STRATEGY
Broadly speaking, there are three significant OTT video streaming monetization models that are most commonly followed by the top OTT companies:
Subscription Video On Demand
As called in the abbreviated form, SVOD is a model under which users can view the entire range of an application’s video content. In return, it charges a recurrent fees that the users will have to pay.
Transactional Video On Demand
As called in the abbreviated form, TVOD is a monetization model that lets users to pay per view.
Under this model, users don’t have the obligation to pay anything at the time of registering or log in. On the other hand, they will be asked to pay a sum based on the titles they wish to stream.
Ad-Supported Video On Demand
As called in the abbreviated form, AVOD is a model that is majorly an advertisement centric digital video streaming service which is available for the users at no fee at all. Under this model, the revenue for the OTT application owner to undergo offsetting production, hosting, and content monetization comes from the advertisements.
HOW MUCH DOES AN OTT VIDEO APP COST?
For an OTT video app development like Netflix or Hulu, the estimated cost is based on several factors:
- The number of platforms on your application will be working
- The geographical location of the collaborated mobile app development company is based out of.
- The number of features you are planning to add to your OTT application
A rough estimate considering all of the above stated factors for the OTT app development will come down to a range between USD 15K to USD 25K.
With this, you are all aware to start preparing for your OTT application. The only thing left to do is to get in touch with an expert in OTT application and get your company’s application developed and live.
FAQs about OTT App Development
Question 1: How OTT Video Apps Can Grow My Video Business?
Answer: As OTT video apps have been glaring popularity that Netflix has created, the emerging applications have a lot to offer to a video business. With the addition of this technology, you can not only enjoy the perks of mass reach but also experience an expedited rise in earnings at the back of well-strategized business models.
Question 2: What is the Best VOD Revenue Model for my OTT Business?
Answer: The answer to this question completely depends on your business idea. However, if you wish to follow the Netflix model, you must choose the monetization mode of either TVOD or SVOD to get a steady inflow of revenue every month.
Question 3: How to build OTT video applications?
Answer: First things first, you will have to take help of OTT app developers to handle the whole technical process. Their team will have a look into the feature set, designing, and development of the whole application. This leaves you to handle other parts of your business.
Question 4: Is YouTube Getting Threatened By OTT Services?
Answer: The answer for this is a no for some time to come. Undoubtedly, YouTube has the largest market share. However, to maintain its leadership in the market, the application will have to find a few better ways to serve creators working in the space of low subscribers and view counts. This can be made possible through high advertisement revenues, increased business support, and creation of paywalls and subscription for some videos.
TecOrb is a one of the reputed Mobile app Development Company prioritizing on developing intuitive mobile apps. Our few recommended application solutions are taxi app development solution, grocery delivery application, food ordering application, and OTT video streaming app etc. Get in touch with our experts to know more about our application services. We have a tech qualified team of developers, who work around our customer’s need and requirements and serve them the best system solutions by testing applications on real devices emulators, and simulators.
