The Future of Media and Entertainment and OTT Platforms

inTechnology

byMark

Much has changed about the world over the past couple of years, including in the media and entertainment sector. We’re witnessing the digital transformation of this industry that is accelerating exponentially. And, for companies to be at the vanguard of resilience and success today and in the future, they need first to understand the profound shifts that are taking place. They need to acquaint themselves with changes that involve production funding and public consumption preferences. 

In today’s era, new tools and formats fuel innovation, including subscription-based services, curation, and personalization using cutting-edge behavioral science and experience testing. Out of the many, many changes this industry has seen, perhaps the most important has been the rise of OTT platforms. Their popularity has surged especially after COVID-19 lockdowns meant most of the world was confined to their homes; so, it only made sense to turn to content streaming to help people bide their time. Changes such as these have significant consequences for the media and entertainment industry, especially concerning its future. 

So, come along, and read on to know what the future of this sector will hold.

  1. Connectivity is key: Unless you have been living under a rock, you know that the internet is everywhere. This has brought about countless changes in how we go about our lives, including how people engage with the media and entertainment sector. The connectivity is driving more content to be streamed and downloaded. 

  2. New content consumption habits: A key change that the media and entertainment industry has observed over the past few years is in the context of consumption. Pretty much everything about content consumption has changed: the means, the duration, the type of content different demographics prefer, and other such factors. These deviations and changes have been further exacerbated by the pandemic and the industry is now of the opinion that these changed consumption patterns and habits are here to stay. 

  3. Live experiences are not over yet: Yet another critical aspect of the media and entertainment industry that has witnessed great change over the past few years is live experience. Especially since 2020, revenues from live, in-person entertainment experiences practically vanished. The reason? The coronavirus pandemic, of course. Interestingly, companies and organizers are starting to set up alternative arrangements such as digital shows, drive-in venues, etc. 

  4. Movie theaters may decline but will not vanish just yet: It is no secret that coronavirus greatly restricted, well, everything. However, speaking specifically in the context of the media and entertainment industry, the pandemic still managed to cause quite a bit of damage and bring about new trends and such. One such aspect of the sector that has been affected greatly over the past couple of years is cinema, which registered a sales decline of a whopping 70.4 percent in 2020 alone. Furthermore, with theaters and multiplexes being forced to shut down, several studios, production houses, etc. decided to opt for straight to OTT release strategies. Others opted for simultaneous cinema releases and OTT releases.

There is absolutely no denying that the media and entertainment sector has been subjected to immense change over the past decade or so. The shift to the digital realm, emergence of OTT platforms, etc. was already happening; however, the sector has been practically completely transformed over the past two years, i.e. since the coronavirus pandemic started. This shift has affected every party involved in the ecosystem; in order to survive and thrive in such a modern market with constantly evolving demands and expectations, companies need the quality assistance of novel technologies and solutions. I