Getting remote audiences plugged to on-demand content

Getting remote audiences plugged to on-demand content
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Five things you should know about VoD Everywhere

By Daniel Kiesling, Senior Manager Solution Management, SES Video

When I was a child, I loved watching “Married … with Children” and “Miami Vice”. If for some reason I had to miss my favourite shows, I remember asking friends or family to record them for me. And if I wanted to catch up on a new series I heard about, I just had to wait until the season would be broadcast again.

Today, the entire world of video has evolved into a completely new landscape. VHS tapes have pretty much disappeared and new consuming habits have popped up, such as binge-watching online. In addition to linear TV, viewers are now increasingly watching content ATAWAD: AnyTime, AnyWhere, on Any Device. Now people can stream the latest episode of “Supernatural” on their tablet before going to bed, or turn their couch into a home cinema with that perfect film chosen just for their family.
 
Consumers across the world are demanding a more ubiquitous access to video, and viewers living in underserved areas are no exception. This unmet consumer need presents an exciting opportunity for local operators, but it comes with a caveat: in remote locations, broadband internet is insufficient to transmit on-demand video content. For example, in Latin American markets like Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, Argentina and Chile, broadband penetration lies between 12% and 17%. That’s where VoD Everywhere comes in – we developed this satellite based solution to enable DTH providers to feed on-demand content to viewers wherever they live via a set-top box.

Here are the top five reasons VoD Everywhere is the optimal solution to bring on-demand to remote viewers:

1. It can reach everyone, everywhere
By using the power of satellite technology and enabling a set-top box, VoD Everywhere redefines unreachable, delivering the flexibility of VoD programming. Leveraging the ubiquitous coverage and the high-transmission capabilities of satellite, the solution can reach viewers across 100% of a territory– without the need for broadband connectivity.
 
2. It’s cost-effective
VoD Everywhere is the most cost-effective way to bring on-demand content to viewers, wherever they are. It requires only minimal investment to launch the set-top box based service, with zero incremental distribution costs. While OTT via internet becomes very costly at higher volumes, distribution costs with VoD Everywhere remain stable no matter the number of subscribers, even during peak usage times – so cost per user decreases as subscription numbers increase.

3. It’s easy to integrate
Watching on-demand video content requires minimum internet speeds of 3Mbps for SD video, 5-8 Mbps for HD, and up to 25Mbps for Ultra HD. In contrast, even developed markets like Switzerland have average connectivity speeds of only 3Mbps, with even lower speeds in developing markets and remote regions. VoD Everywhere uses existing DTH antennas to push a full library of content to the set-top box – without the need for an internet connection. This makes it easy for a broadcaster to add VoD to its existing DTH service offer, and ensure its audience can enjoy a high-quality viewing experience – with no latency, no buffering, and no dropouts. VoD Everywhere is a push-VoD service, meaning the content is stored locally on the set-top box. The dedicated 64GB USB memory stick or flash drive is optimized to write and read video constantly, and can hold up to 70 SD or 23 HD movies, or 271 SD or 91 HD catch-up titles, in the latest compression format (HEVC).

4. It’s adaptable
In addition to service support we can extend our package as needed. We can provide the required technical modules, including content ingest and management, or a specific headend either on the provider’s premises or operated as a service from a private cloud location. Just like VoD itself, the power is with the customer to choose the amount of support preferred.

5. It generates revenue
There’s no question that viewers are enjoying the freedom of choosing what they want to watch, and when. VoD Everywhere provides a new revenue stream for businesses – and gives audiences living in remote regions access to popular on-demand content. And the video lineup delivered via VoD Everywhere avoids the “paradox of choice”, where viewers can’t decide what to watch because they are overwhelmed by the offer. Instead, scheduled library updates are pushed to the set-top box quickly thanks to satellite’s high bandwidth, and ensure the programming lineup stays fresh without significant downtime. And to stay ahead of the competition, the solution also provides access to live events with start-over functionality.

We’ve come a long way since the VHS era, and VoD everywhere is bringing us closer to getting those new video services to every viewer, no matter where they live. Soon I will be able to say “a few years ago, only people living in urban areas were able to binge-watch their favourite TV show or access catch-up content - thanks to VoD Everywhere, that’s no longer the case.”

To learn more about how to deliver on-demand content everywhere, download our e-book “VoD Everywhere: Redefining Unreachable.”