In a recent blog post (Success
With OTT” Handbook, What Page Are You On?), I reference confusion we believe
exists in the marketplace with OTT-related terms and definitions, as well as
some possible misunderstanding of OTT’s value to telcos and their customers. There
are a number of causes for this, none of which more troubling than simply undervaluing
OTT’s important role in growing your business and improving your customer
experience.
We
all know the story about touching an elephant in the dark, right? You know,
each person only touches one part, which ultimately limits perspective of the
elephant’s full size and scope.
Telcos have to see
all of OTT, with all the lights on.
At
Endavo, we see OTT as so much more than just content or services over the
Internet, or a device connected to, or built into, the TV receiving content from
the Internet. While it’s true, OTT represents the much-awaited convergence of
traditional TV and the Internet, and is blurring the lines between PCs, TVs and
mobile devices, it’s even more than that.
Bottom
line, OTT is about delivering content and services to people, not just places—which
represents a big change in thinking, but
also huge business opportunities for telco service providers.
Many broadcasters and content distributors, like CNN and Hulu, are
providing access to more programming on and away from the TV and they are generating
increased demand for content on multiple devices. However, they alone do not
truly represent the complete OTT experience consumers are demanding. I think we
all can agree that consumers want to experience their personalized entertainment
and information on many devices, but they want it to be easy to find, access
and consume.
So why does the OTT industry remain mostly fragmented into device
and service “silos”? Why is it still difficult for consumers to find and buy OTT
content? Once purchased, why can’t they get easy access to it on other devices?
Who across the OTT value chain can improve the experience of OTT to the point
that it begins to really matter to consumers?
Service providers (MSO, satellite, broadcast and IPTV) have traditionally
brought us TV, and now broadband operators (telcos, cable) can leverage their
broadband assets and service infrastructure to provide OTT and on-net video services over multiple
devices.
It’s clear that service providers can wrap quality
of service around OTT, and make it easily accessible through trusted
channels and integrated billing, which is something most pure-play OTT
solutions simply can’t yet do. And by “quality of service”, I mean both delivering
high quality video over their managed “last mile”, as well as delivering true customer
service. Service providers are in the best position to deliver the type of OTT
that will matter to consumers.
So, someone please hit the lights. We can’t limit perspective on OTT’s
size, scope and importance in growing your business.
This
is how I see it. What’s your take?
Paul
D Hamm
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