Unified Streaming, a leader in smart video streaming technologies, has announced an enhancement to its video playlist technology for OTT streams that improves engagement with viewers, creates efficiencies in streaming workflows and drives new advertising opportunities.

The playlist technology, which powers the company’s Unified Remix solution, allows broadcasters, operators and streaming platforms to be much more flexible in the way they deliver video. By working with playlists, as opposed to video files, broadcasters and streaming providers are able to manage streams on the fly, via their own CMS, and make the OTT experience more relevant to the end viewer, meanwhile reducing the heavy lifting that file-based workflows require. For example, regional edits and dub plates for local markets can be edited via a CMS rather than in an editing suite, saving huge costs in the encoding, transfer and storage of large video files.

The latest enhancement to Remix provides streams that are curatable to each viewer, opening up new revenue opportunities through personalized advertising, and encouraging more viewer engagement through the addition of enhanced playback experiences.

Simon Westbroek, VP Global Sales at Unified Streaming said: ​“Demands on video streaming workflows are growing from all sides, with increased viewer expectation for personalized experiences meeting a need from many broadcasters, operators and streaming platforms to monetize content more effectively and reduce overheads. Unified Remix’s latest playlist enhancements respond to these essential needs by enabling smarter, more dynamic and more relevant video streaming workflows in the most efficient way.”

Benefits of this approach include:

Personalized advertising: Broadcasters and streaming providers can command a higher CPM and increase advertising revenues through one-to-one targeting and measurement for AVOD and live streaming. The solution is agnostic to all major dynamic ad insertion (DAI) vendors.

Enhanced viewer functionality: Viewers benefit from the latest playback features, such as ​“skip intro” to get to the content quicker, or the ability to scroll through a live event timeline (to re-watch a goal during a soccer match, for example).

Virtual live channels: By creating personalized playlists, streaming providers can make more of their VOD libraries by re-purposing content and serving up a string of relevant programs to each viewer. These can be in the form of a themed pop-up channel, personalized sports highlights or audio playlists, reducing time wasted on search while increasing watch time and driving an increase in advertising opportunities. Virtual live channels will be available from Q1 2021.

Westbroek added: ​“One of the best things about Unified Remix’s enhanced playlists is that they open up far more options for streaming providers moving forward, such as AI-powered decision-making, contextual advertising and other personalized experiences. Unified Remix solves the streaming challenges of today and of the future.”

Unified Remix supports all the major streaming formats that are in use today: HLS — including CMAF, MPEG-DASH and Microsoft Smooth Streaming. Subtitles are also supported to help providers reach the broadest audience possible, as are the main DRM systems.

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