Category: Video

Let the bloodbath begin!

~ michael_msft ~ Leave a comment

Banged this out yesterday – http://www.nokpis.com/2016/04/18/the-actual-state-of-ott-in-emerging-markets/

The idea being that the expansion of OTT across the planet will be a full scale war and that it won’t simply be handed over to Netflix on a silver platter.

Now we have Netflix with the okay quarter but with a shady forecast: http://techcrunch.com/2016/04/18/netflix-posts-a-mixed-q1-but-adds-6-74m-new-subscribers/

Don’t get me wrong here. Netflix is huge and growing but the cost of building out tech and a library for the globe won’t be cheap. They are also losing paid subscribers who can no longer VPN to get the good content. I am in Singapore and the size of the library sucks here. I can’t even get the latest season of many of the Netflix shows. Thankfully I still use my mom’s account so not like I am sweating the subscription.

However on top of dealing with all the regional players, Netflix has to now contend with Amazon.

http://arstechnica.com/business/2016/04/amazon-starts-offering-prime-video-as-a-8-99-monthly-subscription/

I always assumed Amazon would do this at some point but didn’t expect it this soon. To be frank I had Prime for a bit so I could play with the video service but didn’t keep it due to not having enough content. With the service now being split out I may try it again but I have always found their tech and apps to suck in comparison to HBO and Netflix. Amazon always does just enough to get by versus build the best app ever. It shows with their video apps but maybe this breakout will force them to compete more. Time will tell.

One thing we do know is video is growing like mad – even in Asia. http://variety.com/2016/digital/asia/online-video-further-growth-in-asia-report-1201755475/

I think the market will split off into a few groups and that there will never be one dominant player for the globe or for the Asian regions.

But who the hell knows.

The actual state of OTT in emerging markets

~ michael_msft ~ 2 Comments

Wrote this recently about the Quartz article, http://www.nokpis.com/2016/04/15/finally-met-up-with-josh/ .

One of the discussions that always comes up is how the players like us or iFlix compete with Netflix or how these services in general will survive.

I always remind people that the fight is not about HOOQ versus the competition but actually it is the notion of getting people to pay in the first place versus steal.

This tweet sums that up perfectly:

https://twitter.com/BRLP97/status/721899648449818624

Finally met up with Josh

~ michael_msft ~ 1 Comment

I didn’t get to attend the TIA conference but was able to catch up with lots of folks who were in town and went to a nice event by Sequoia.

Say what you will about our current times but Singapore is absolutely hopping right now and is the center of the startup universe for SEA region and India. Love it. So fortunate to be here at this time.

I have many Twitter friends that I sometimes get to meet and Josh would be one of those. We finally got to hang out and chat a bit.

As a writer, he of course decided to spring this on the Internet after we chatted.

Good stuff. As I always tell people – OTT in emerging markets is really just kicking off and has a long ways to go. I wouldn’t profess to know where it all might land, but it’s a crazy hot space regardless.

One comment – that last little quote by iFlix – we all know 1 million is just registered users. Paying subs will be some marginal single digit percentage point of that total number. As I always say – release real stats or none at all.

Good chatting with you Josh – I guess we will keep up the Twitter DM dialogue going till we meet again.

Of course Apple’s so called streaming service is a no-show

~ michael_msft ~ Leave a comment

Not a very thorough article but jogged my memory some :: http://www.techinsider.io/apple-streaming-tv-service-delayed-2016-2

I think people don’t realize that the launch of Netflix global is going to set everything back a bit before things can move forward. I love watching all the haters coming out and bashing the OTT companies over content or VPN issues. Folks – you are bashing the wrong crew. It’s the content owners to bitch at – not the streamers.

The world of content rights is such a mess it’s not even funny. Just look at all the audio guys – even Pandora can’t make money. The only guys making money in streaming audio are the owners of the rights and the infrastructure guys. Not the artists or the streaming companies. Spotify is huge but I am sure they don’t make money.

Apple wanted to upend the market and offer some sort of global subscription with content from all over at a fair price. Great. Bring it. But the content guys don’t want that cause they sold the rights a zillion different ways and until all the rights are reset and the system capitulates nothing will happen. Apple will probably keep trying but I bet it takes years.

What I don’t get is why Apple is trying to do this stuff when there is a ton of things they are not doing to make it easier to build a better OTT system on their platform. Apple is trying to be everything these days while at the same time they are not building or shipping the best tools for those who focus on OTT to build the best product. At this point Google has pulled ahead in this platform game in my opinion.

Google:

– Cheapest device to get content on the big screen – Chromecast
– Allows the app developer to implement multiple payment options – not just Google Pay
– Is shipping a basically free DRM platform that works well across chrome, android and chromecast. Plus it includes download as a core feature

Apple:

– Apple TV is pricey and still buggy as hell
– Apple only allows Apple payments and only credit cards. Emerging markets totally missed
– Shipping a DRM system that works well enough across Apple ecosystem but reserves the use of download only for Apple. Pathetic!

I have faults with both these guys in general:

    Tons of pirate apps in the stores
    Still taking 30% for content subscriptions when they know the margins don’t support it
    Unfairly using DRM to control the ecosystems

OTT biz is hard but these guys could do a lot more to help create the best platform versus trying to be the end user product.

Have fun dodging the VPN blocks!

Thoughts on OTT

~ michael_msft ~ 6 Comments

Update to the post::

I said as much in my list below – get ready for the VPN to stop working when it comes to gaming Netflix content libraries.

First, let me start off with a shameless plug for a podcast I was a guest of:

Now that we got that out of the way we can continue on. Also – my shameless plus is so we make this AA’s #1 podcast to ensure I get invited back. 😉

Let me disclose that I work at hooq.tv and used to work at spuul.com . I do have some sense of this world I am talking about. I don’t have a crystal ball and I also think that in the emerging markets it will take years to declare a winner. Years I say!

That being said I think it is important to note some things for the pedestrians:

    – In many markets, say Taxis or car booking services, I can agree with the winner take all or winner take most, especially in the USA or China. FYI Om covered this topic well here :: http://www.newyorker.com/tech/elements/in-silicon-valley-now-its-almost-always-winner-takes-all. However in large regional area or emerging markets I am not sure if it is true and it also has to be that pricing almost equalizes. In the case of this specific subject if we are talking about Netflix dominating in India I struggle to see how a company that charges 3x its emerging markets brethren can own the market. Maybe it will own the high end but how would it own the market that does not pay that much for entertainment?

    – Let no one kid you. None of these players are currently fighting over a paid customer base – we are all fighting to convert a pirate over to a paying subscriber. That will take years and there are plenty of pirates to share at this moment.

    – Local content is a big deal and no one player owns it all nor can sell it all to one OTT player. Also many of the local content players are building or have built their own OTT services.

    – There can never be just one service for all. Take me for example. I share my mom’s Netflix account but I buy my own HBO account. I value HBO way more than Netflix and nothing they did last week changed that equation for me.

    – Payment models in the emerging markets are hard. For Netflix it very well could be that the only customer they care about has a credit card. That still lives 100’s of millions of customers for companies like HOOQ who think there are others way to take money from users.

    – Not only are payment models hard but so are subscription types. Is a monthly recurring subscription going to work in the emerging markets? For some folks it might. For others maybe weekly subscriptions is better? Maybe a subscription tied to a data balance makes more sense. No one knows yet.

    – Content rights are super hard. I love seeing all the people baffled as to why they log into Netflix Singapore and it doesn’t look like the USA catalog. Netflix didn’t buy all the rights for Singapore because they know it is a small market. It may not be worth it and chances are some of it is not available. Also, Netflix being a capitalist, sold some of their shows to services in Singapore already so they can’t just take it back. Over time as they grow they will fix this but again Netflix could never own everything you want to see.

    – As OTT takes off some of the big players will try to work around Netflix and other services to go direct. One good read on this :: http://bgr.com/2015/11/05/netflix-streaming-time-warner/

    – The all powerful VPN. Currently lots of folks are signing up for Netflix Singapore and then using a VPN or anonymous IP to get the USA catalog. All good but keep in mind they way content rights work. They are bought and sold for a region – they are not tied to what credit card you use. Lots of folks talk about Apple TV or iTunes as the model where I can use my use a credit card to buy a show. And I can watch it in Singapore but note I am paying US prices so the content guys don’t care. Apple is not a subscription service and notice it they planned on doing this with TV and backed down. Netflix is getting away with murder right now. Pay Singapore prices but watch a USA catalog. At some point the content owners may ask Netflix to enforce geo specific rule or to simply not support VPN usage. Most content owners ask companies like HOOQ to try to block VPN’s or similar tools. As global content streaming takes off, I expect this to be an ongoing discussion.

    – To summarize I would like to say this is going to take time to all play out. As I like to remind my team regularly – it’s a marathon – not a sprint.

I’ll add to this is if I think I missed something.

VOD – here come Asia!

~ michael_msft ~ Leave a comment

We all know VOD is big. Just check Netflix for reference. I pretty much never watch actual TV or cable – except for the news.

Normally I am watching HOOQ, HBO Now, or Netflix. Plus a lot of iTunes video.

Given all that it is no wonder that global VOD growth is gonna keep growing.

What is exciting is the Asia numbers:

The VOD market in Asia Pacific Excluding Japan (APEJ) is expanding at a robust pace and by 2020, the market is expected to reach $80.5 billion.

How do you like them apples?

Good times.

Grinding it out

~ michael_msft ~ Leave a comment

Day to day product stuff can be a real grind. Sweating out the details to eak some performance out by a mere fraction of a second, dealing with a partner who can’t code their way out of wet paper bag and pouring over printed contracts trying to make sure we don’t get screwed. You know, the fun stuff that no one ever sees but that make a world of a difference.

Given all that work this is one of those weeks that HOOQ can bask in the glory a bit…

Although the local trade rags don’t talk about us much, I think we raised too much money or something, the FT, my fav paper, mentioned us :: http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/fb11e7b6-7df4-11e5-98fb-5a6d4728f74e.html

There is much to talk about the OTT wars. I am working on building my second one and as I always tell people it is a marathon, not a sprint. User signups for example don’t mean much when it comes to “revenue”, but all that being said – there are a few of us out to get the prize. One could even argue what the prize is but for me it is to build a real revenue business in streaming content to people in the emerging markets. It’s a tough problem.

I will speaking about it here :: http://www.ap.idc.asia/events/view/agenda/?event_id=612&loc_id=1151

I always mention how bizdev is a tricky beast for a startup – I have written about that before :: http://www.nokpis.com/2014/07/10/fear-bizdev/

Even with HOOQ I have been wary of BD due to the work it creates. For the last few months we have been grinding on this :: http://www.snapdeal.com/product/google-chromecast-hdmi-streaming-media/1709999463?offer_id=17&aff_id=14723&utm_source=aff_prog&utm_campaign=afts

How do you like them Apples?

BizDev is tough – be wary.

That being said we worked hard on shipping chromecast. It has been well received by our users.

Today we added one more thing – native chrome browser support for HTML 5 video. For the nerds – this is hard stuff that most common users can’t appreciate. Having to do secure video at scale with HTML 5 isn’t easy. We will fix the other browsers as soon as we can.

#productLife

Gruber nails the Netflix posturing

~ michael_msft ~ 2 Comments

It is exactly what I have been saying – they don’t have the feature. It may well be they don’t even have the rights for offline – those are obtained separately and not part of a standard OTT package of rights.

http://daringfireball.net/linked/2015/09/08/gizmodo-netflix

So what do you do if you don’t have offline viewing – you say no one needs it. It is too confusing. It won’t work well.

The you ship it at some point heralding it as the best thing since shipping DVD’s to people in the mail.

I love cool people on Twitter

~ michael_msft ~ Leave a comment

One of my pet peeves is when you tweet to someone and they don’t reply back. Of course I am not saying everyone has to but it’s when they do.

Take Don Melton for example. https://twitter.com/donmelton

I follow his podcast and hear him on other podcasts and I check out his encoding work.

I say him tweet something that I had a reply and some questions to. Boom. He replied.

I have had less famous people than Don never reply to – people with loss followers but who are so full of themselves they don’t reply.

I always unfollow these people.

Here is out tweet discussion for reference :: https://storify.com/dreampipe/conversation-with-donmelton-and-dreampipe

Thanks Don – that was fun!