6 June 2017
Setting the record straight on OTT
There’s a lot of hype around the OTT market, and rightly so. It’s being disrupted and improved at a staggering pace. Here we take a quick look at a few misconceptions, and offer some insight and rationale to explain what’s happening.
Misconception: Traditional TV is dead
There’s been a lot of talk about the amount of cord cutting: consumers opting out of traditional TV and instead choosing internet delivered services. Whilst this is true, and we’re witnessing a fast take-up of OTT streaming across the globe, traditional TV and cable is expected to be here for a while yet. But with so many consumers still having a TV at home: 95% of UK households according to Ofcom, watching an average of 3 hours 36 minutes a day analysts are not predicting a exodus of terrestrial, cable or satellite TV just yet. Comscore research shows that households with both OTT and TV watch more than 5 hours of live TV for every hour watching OTT content. But with many more internet based TV platforms launching this year, and the continued growth in OTT streaming, analysts predict that TV will continue to face tough competition from new, online competitors.
Misconception: Buffering is just part of the online video viewing experience
A core vision for both Falcon Media House and Quiptel is to end buffering. It’s a big ambition and one we’re highly motivated to achieve. To-date there has been limited study of how buffering delays affect audience perception of a service or brand, however there’s lots of evidence showing that interrupted viewing at the start or during a session turns viewers away swiftly. Research from 2016 found that over 50% of consumers had experienced ‘buffer rage’. Almost half of responders said that they would wait at most 10 seconds before clicking out of a buffering video and nearly 40% of those would never attempt to re-watch the video.
Misconception: All OTT connections are equal
There’s no doubt that out-of-home viewing is on the rise, which arguably makes Quality of Experience (QoE) the biggest industry challenge. In-home OTT streaming offers a more controlled and superior user experience than streaming on the move. Varying 3G and 4G signals, broadband speeds, wifi connectivity and local network congestion are just a few of the reasons why out-of-home user experiences can be disrupted. The open internet alone does not guarantee to deliver seamless viewing experiences at any place at any time.
According to a recent consumer study by Ineoquest, buffering ratio, poor visual quality, and under-performing wifi are an out-of-home users’ biggest complaints. This causes engagement levels to drop, with many users opting immediately for alternative content at the first sign of buffering, symbolic of their increasingly limited patience for content to play.
Outlook: Positive
The future for OTT streaming services is bright. The availability of quality streaming services will increase as new disruptive content providers and producers enter the market, all pointing their cameras towards the future.
Gert Rieder, CEO Falcon Media House.
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