If you’re starting a video business, knowing how to build a video-on-demand website should be high on your list of priorities. The VOD website will be a way for your audience to access and enjoy your content from their browsers.
However, there is more to building a VOD site than just purchasing a domain and uploading some videos. Read on to find out more about the process of building a site, how much you should expect to spend on it, as well as whether to consider adding an OTT app to your portfolio.
What Is a Video-on-Demand (VOD) Website?
A video-on-demand website is any website where users can access on-demand video content. VOD websites are often an integral part of OTT streaming services such as YouTube, Netflix, or Twitch.
Which Industries Use VOD Technology the Most?
The entertainment industry is the undeniable king of VOD. This includes movies, shows, sports, and TV entertainment. However, several other industries make use of VOD streaming, too.
Media outlets, for instance, often use the video format in reporting. On-demand video content is also particularly popular in education, especially for online courses and other forms of informal education. Lastly, video is a popular format in marketing and advertising, making this industry one of the top VOD players, too.
How Much Does It Cost to Build a VOD Website?
The precise cost of building a VOD website can vary greatly. In fact, it can be completely free if you rely on free website builders and only need to host a few videos. However, if you want to launch a VOD business, you will need more than that.
In order to estimate the costs of building a video-on-demand website, you will need to establish exactly what features you want to include and how you plan on going about this task. Hiring a web developer and self-hosting the entire library is the most expensive option that can run you thousands, if not tens of thousands of dollars.
However, these costs can be reduced significantly if you find a video-on-demand platform. These platforms are equipped with the necessary tools and solutions to help you get your VOD business off the ground. This includes secure video hosting, a built-in online video player, video performance analytics, and even paywall integration.
Flexible and reliable video-on-demand solution.
– Video Hosting
– High-Quality Streaming
– Content Management
– Ad-Powered Monetization
3 Things You Need to Do Before Building a VOD Website
When starting a VOD business, building a website is only the tip of the iceberg. Before you get to that step, there are three essential things to do first.
Find a Reliable Video Hosting Provider
As we already mentioned, self-hosting your library is not exactly the most cost-efficient method. A much simpler and more affordable alternative is to find a third-party enterprise video hosting platform.
A good platform will provide you with the necessary security and privacy features for your library (such as DRM and AES encryption, for instance), so you won’t have to worry about your content being distributed illegally. Additionally, the platform you choose should have video encoding and transcoding capabilities. Although this isn’t a must-have, it is certainly a big perk.
Some video platforms double as video hosting sites, allowing you to distribute content via their network. These solutions, such as YouTube and Twitch, are often free to use and allow you to bypass having to build a website. However, they will also take a chunk of your revenue and limit the brandability of your video library.
Build a Rich Video Library
Once you’ve chosen a video hosting provider, the fun (and arguably the most difficult) part begins — content creation. Alternatively, if you’re not planning on creating original content, you will have to obtain distribution rights for the videos you plan to broadcast.
Choose a Monetization Model
The right monetization model for your VOD service will depend on the kind of content you have, your target audience, your planned initial investment, and so on. There are four main options to choose from:
- Advertisements — With AVOD, also known as advertising video on demand, your audience will see ads in exchange for access to your content. You can generate income by selling ad inventory to demand sources (i.e. advertisers and brands). For this monetization model, you will need to find the right video ad network.
- Subscriptions — Subscription video-on-demand, or SVOD for short, relies on recurring payments from viewers. These can be monthly, weekly, or even yearly plans. To be able to use SVOD, you will need to integrate a secure paywall and invest in customer support. In addition, you should make sure your content is worth paying for in the long run.
- Transactions — You can also have viewers pay a one-time fee for access to your content. This model is known as TVOD, and it includes pay-per-view charges, one-time sales, and any other single transaction-based pricing models.
- Hybrid — For many VOD services, the best course of action is to combine multiple video monetization models. One of the most widely used combinations is that of paid subscription tears with a free, ad-supported tier.
How to Build a Video-on-Demand Website
Now that the preliminary steps are done, it’s time to actually start building your VOD website. There are several ways you can go about this.
Code It From Scratch
Coding a website from scratch will give you complete freedom in terms of its appearance and functionalities. However, it is by far the most costly, complicated, and time-consuming option. You would either have to spend months building the site yourself or hire a developer to do it for you.
Use a Website Builder
A much simpler solution than coding is to build a website using a builder such as WordPress. An important thing to keep in mind, however, is that you will still need certain third-party services and integrations to make the website VOD-friendly. These include an HTML5 player, hosting, paywall integration, ad-serving capabilities, security solutions, and more.
Find a White-Label OTT Platform
The right white-label OTT platform will provide you with all the necessary solutions to start a VOD business. With such an all-in-one OTT solution, you won’t have to worry about costly third-party integrations. Some must-haves to look for in an OTT platform are private video hosting, a lightweight, customizable video player, a reliable global CDN, the right monetization solutions, and an easy-to-use video CMS.
Should You Build an OTT App to Support Your VOD Website?
Most VOD platforms come equipped with solutions for building OTT apps, too. In fact, most successful VOD businesses have apps for mobile phones, tablets, CTVs, and other devices, along with a website. Should you follow in their footsteps? Check out some of the biggest benefits an OTT app can bring, and decide for yourself:
- Multi-Channel Access — With a website, viewers can only access your content through a web browser. However, an app will allow them to view your videos more easily from any device they want to.
- Better Audience Reach — The average person spends eight times as much time using an app as opposed to a mobile browser. By developing an OTT app, you will be able to reach an app-exclusive audience, too.
- Additional Capabilities — Apps often have additional features not found on websites. For instance, your app can allow a user to cast a video stream from their mobile phone to a TV.
- Better Monetization — In-app advertising is all the rage. By contrast, mobile web advertising is slowly dying out. So if you decide to monetize your content through ads, an app might prove to be much more lucrative.
Read More: In-App vs. Mobile Web Advertising: Which One Is Better for Publishers
Launch an OTT App With Brid.TV
After you’ve built a website, launching an OTT app can take your VOD business to a whole new level. With Brid.TV’s white-label OTT solution, you can create an app to your liking for Android, iOS, Tizen, AppleTV, and more, without any coding. Our apps are equipped with ad-serving and tracking technology, allowing you to optimize yield and scale your business. Join Brid.TV today to launch your OTT app!
* This article was originally published here