Podcast #954: Ten Facts about the Over The Top Transition

On today's podcast we bring you 15 Smart Home Devices that are worth Every Penny and Ten Facts about the Over The Top (OTT) Transition. And, as usual, we read some listener email and go through the top news stories of the week.

10 Facts about the OTT transition

1. OTT is the fastest growing media and entertainment segment - OTT services have been around for less than 10 years and they've already grown to surpass the size of major broadcasters and studios around the world. In some markets, there are now more eyeballs watching OTT services than traditional broadcasters.
2. OTT costs less - With OTT you select the services you feel provide the most value, and you're not bound by contracts — You can cancel anytime. However, if you try to replicate the exact service you can come pretty close to the same cost.
3. OTT allows you to watch content from around the world - You can find content from just about any country. When my mother-in-law was staying with us for a couple of weeks I was able to purchase two networks for her stay and then I canceled when she went home.
4. The most popular OTT services, like Netflix and Amazon Prime, provide a premium experience with no commercials - Premium OTT services are becoming the source for high-quality, highly entertaining original content. The shift in advertising dollars has seen many broadcasters adopt lower quality, cheaper programming.
5. The demand for content has reinvigorated the global content creation industry - Unprecedented demand to serve the ever-growing content budgets of services like Netflix, Amazon Prime and now HBO Max and Disney+
6. Demand for content is driving studios and content owners to find a more efficient way to monetize their libraries - It seems like every network has some sort of OTT platform
7. With the increased competition in OTT, more and better options for consumers are being developed - For example, there are now OTT services for people who love tennis or soccer, and that's all they broadcast. Quibi serves quick bites of content optimized for mobile consumption for younger audiences and people on the go.
8. OTT is agile - Content providers can react in real time and serve up relevant programming in response to current events.
9. Services like Netflix and Amazon allow parents more control with the ability to filter content and create childproof user accounts
10. During the COVID-19 crisis, the cinema industry has been particularly hit hard with screens going dark - Studios have had to turn to alternate methods of generating revenue from first-run movies using OTT services. It has been an overwhelming success."Trolls 2: World Tour" wrapped up nearly $100 million in rentals in its first week.