When we hear the names Netflix, Hulu, Prime, etc we think of the amazing content that they have made available to us over the years. Be it much loved shows from TV or original content that they produce, these OTT video platforms have made a dramatic difference in how people consume entertainment content. If creating one such platform via an OTT video app is on your mind, then here’s a list of things to do:
STEP 1: RESEARCH & IDENTIFY YOUR NICHE
The only way to verify the viability is by investing in market research and obtaining quantitative data that supports your idea. Once you have data that supports your idea, analyse the potential of growth and audience outreach that your app idea has.
STEP 2: BUILD AN INVENTORY OF RELEVANT CONTENT
Once you have your niche selected, start looking for relevant content. While this will obviously include the most popular and critically acclaimed content from the niche, do not forget to also add content that might not yet have been discovered by the masses yet. The popular content might pull in the masses but it’s the fresh new content that will keep them engaged in the longer run.
STEP 3: DECIDE YOUR MONETIZATION MODEL
Most popular mobile app business models as of June 2019, by usage and monetization
Any OTT video platform also has mainly two app monetization models available to them. They include:
IN-APP ADVERTISING
The most popular model employed by app developers, this method generates indirect revenue for the app by providing a free app to its users where they are shown ads.
SUBSCRIPTION
Only those who have subscribed and paid for the services of the app get to access all the content. This content can either be a certain price for a time duration like monthly, annually, etc, or a pay-per-view charge.
FREEMIUM
Under the freemium model, a certain amount of video content is available for free users, while paying subscribers get to view additional premium content.
STEP 4: RESEARCH THE TECH STACK YOU’LL NEED & SHORTLIST
What is a tech stack? It is the cumulative technologies that operate together to build a web/mobile application, website, or digital product. It includes programming languages, software products, server infrastructure and frameworks. Understanding the requirements of your app and website with the tech team is of utmost importance. Once they have created the wireframes and shortlisted the modules they need, you can decide the tech stack that’s most suitable for your needs and then start working on the app.
STEP 5: START CREATING YOUR APP & WEBSITE
The process of building an OTT video app involves many people. From UI/UX designers to front-end and back-end developers, it takes an expert team to create a seamless app experience.
There are many things to be kept in mind when building the app of your dreams. You can read more about what key mistakes to avoid when building an app here. Broadly there are three ways that you can build an OTT video app & a website, each with its own pros and cons.
- Hiring an in-house team
- Collaborating with expert freelancers
- Working with an app development agency like Valere
Outsourcing’s biggest advantage is that it gives you access to experts who work on your app while you can work on the bigger picture to scale and grow the business. You can learn more about outsourcing your app development here.
STEP 6: TESTING & FEEDBACK
Once you have your Minimum Viable Product or MVP ready, it’s important to constantly keep testing after every change. Constantly taking feedback from a test audience is also very important to understand whether the UI/UX is perfectly optimized or not, if there are any more features that you can have to make it a better experience, etc.
Any such app should always keep the user’s experience at its core. It should be seamless to use and even easier to discover new content. One should give importance to things like UI/UX optimization or using AI for better suggestions. This will build user loyalty over time. For end-to-end expert OTT video mobile app development solutions, you can reach out to us at Valere and for an estimate of the budget, you can use our App Development Cost Calculator.
Valere is an award-winning software development agency that has built over 300 top-rated applications for startups and Fortune 500 companies in all verticals like healthcare, finance, sports, fitness, education, and more. Their apps have been featured by the New York Times, and have been consistently recognized as Apple App Store’s top featured apps, TechRadar, and Google Play Store’s top featured apps! Schedule a call with us today to learn how we can help your team create the perfect software or application that can Accelerate Your Business Goals!
