TV, Laptop, Smart Phone, Tablet…Multi-platform Content Delivery!
Content delivery used to be as simple as deciding the type of audience viewing the content, what form it had to take, and selecting a medium like broadcast channels or the internet for the presentation. Over the last few years, popular options such as a laptop or tablet for receiving have increased in number. Multi-platform content delivery opened a smorgasbord of choices for viewing programs with quality display and sound.
Technology is sophisticated in the way broadcasters provide delivery. Consumers expect to receive a seamless presentation regardless of which device is used for watching. Instead of distributors determining the most comfortable platform for customers to receive content, consumers are rapidly taking control. They are quickly demanding personalised content with more choice and interactivity.
The wide variety of mobile devices pressures content management systems to use a minimal amount of custom code for multi-platform delivery. This step makes it possible for delivery to laptops, notebooks, tablets and smart phones regardless of the device’s screen size and resolution. Screen resolution will replace device detection as the control to properly fit the delivery to the screen.
Even though additional devices provide easier access to consumers, the resulting noise makes it hard to reach and retain them. The outlook for multi-platform content delivery companies is difficult to forecast. Competition for distribution rights from content owners is fraught with concern over what customers want and how to win their allegiance.
Additional value propositions are being studied and evaluated as a way to demonstrate to customers that their wants and needs matter and are being heeded. The rapidly changing market emphasises the requirement for companies to add to their flexibility, efficiency, and speed while reacting to changes.
Multi-platform marketing plans must recognise that consumers enjoy having more choice about what can be delivered to a laptop, while bypassing any viewing complications if viewed on a tablet. It is also important to become more familiar with customers, noting their viewing patterns and use of mobile devices. Rather than limiting choices of content delivery and pushing customers to a competitor, companies have the opportunity to be proactive by offering what consumers want.