The Future Of Video is OTT

Vishal Dembla, CCO, HOOQ

Vishal Dembla, CCO, HOOQ

It wasn’t that long ago that we, as everyday consumers, had to build our schedules around the show times of our favourite TV shows and movies. And even when watching a particular show or movie, there was no pause or rewind function; you either pay attention and engage with what’s on, or potentially miss out on an important plotline.

Thankfully this is no longer the case. The television and media industry has undergone speedy transformation since then, and it continues to evolve at rapid pace. Cable and satellite introduced extensive programming, DVR empowered users the ability to watch and record multiple channels, mobile internet gave way to multi-screen viewing, and video-on-demand (VOD) has ultimately put the user in complete control of what, when and how they choose to watch. It has completely revolutionised the way video content is viewed, whilst also contributed to taking traditional cable and satellite TV to the next level thanks to the widespread availability of high-speed broadband Internet.

However, even with all of these changes, there are a number of new challenges facing the industry today. The “disruptors” of yesterday are now the norm, and OTT has been widely adopted the preferred choice for many. But even then, some of the challenges that traditional or linear TV used to face are now affecting the OTT space; the biggest of which would be competing for engagement, which becomes even more challenging as the industry continues to fragment itself. Traditionally, competition came in the form of different channels and content offerings, however today; the TV screen itself is competing with multiple categories of entertainment from social media platforms, games and even utilities. Everyone is battling for screen time.

So how can OTT services fight for TV time? How can they keep viewers engaged with their platform, service or channel for as long as possible? There are already some well-established international services that do this especially well, such as social media platforms and short-form content aggregators that monetise through ad-revenues.

Building A Data-Centric Business With Data-Driven Insights Will Help Inform Who, What Where, When And Why Consumers Want To Watch Specific Content

The power of data

Though not entirely specific to the TV and media industry, all companies have aspirations to being fully data-driven but aren’t able to transform quickly enough into a data-centric business. Without data to act as an insight or validation point, a lot of what they do is guesswork.

Building a data-centric business with data-driven insights will help inform who, what where, when and why consumers want to watch specific content. This in turn will exert a strong influence on how media companies package, deliver and monetise their content. In addition, there will be a stronger push for local and regional players to build capabilities around data, specifically big data. This won’t be just to drive monetisation, but also to inform creative output.

Content still wears the crown

It may not be a surprise to realise that content is king and will continue to bear the crown. However, it’s now a case of understanding what kind of content. OTT providers need to embrace original content and offer their viewers fresh and consistent content to retain existing customers as well attract new ones.

In general, in Asia, Hollywood content constitutes approximately 2 – 4% viewership of most markets in the region. With this, we foresee a renaissance of local and regional content. We’re already seen increased “verticalisation” of the OTT space, with platforms finding their niche, offering specific types of content to their audience-base.

As competition intensifies in the OTT space and providers create their libraries of original content, the original content alone could be an insufficient differentiator. OTT providers will have to find that balance, to complement exciting, original content with a niche audience and personalisation.

Make content more accessible

In addition to building more data-centric companies, new technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) will impact the industry to a greater degree than current utilisation. Some services have been using AI and ML at a very basic level, to make and improve program recommendations, however this won’t be the be-all-and-end-all use case. AI and ML can free up creative resources and improve operating efficiency in multiple parts of the value chain. For example, at HOOQ, we’re using state-of-the-art machine-learning to localise content for India, making Hollywood and Western content easily accessible to the masses by way of language.

If OTT providers can adapt or build around data, content, and make that content accessible to a large audience, it means they can provide a better service and overall experience for consumers. After all, consumer demand for OTT services is rising, and the number of entertainment platforms capable of delivering them is on the rise. As long as they can address these roadblocks, we should expect to see significant OTT growth in Asia in the years ahead.