This week, Facebook launched its television platform ‘Facebook Watch’ to encourage its 2bn monthly active users to see the platform as a destination for watching longer videos. Steve Miller-Jones, Senior Director of Product Management at Limelight Networks, explains why the trend towards watching video online shows no signs of stopping – consumers have taken control and the message is clear.
Viewing habits have shifted significantly. Online video viewership continues to grow, as does the number of connected devices for consuming content, as highlighted by our State of Online Video market research report.
There is an ongoing trend of audiences moving away from traditional channels and towards shows from TV streaming providers. Viewers can easily find content that appeals to them and stream it on demand.
Today broadcasters have to earn their viewers by investing in high quality, original drama. They can no longer simply count on an audience from the show in the previous time slot as they would have done in the days before streaming.
Consumers are completely in control of the viewing experience. They decide what to watch, when to watch it, and they expect it to be delivered at broadcast quality to any device. Content distributors must ensure that they can deliver a high-quality, flexible viewing experience.”
As more and more viewers “cut the cord” with traditional broadcasters and turn to streaming, the number of household subscriptions to OTT services is rising and the traditional broadcast television model is crumbling – making it an incredibly exciting time to be a content distributor.
By Steve Miller-Jones
Senior Director of Product Management