Every OTT platform will offer personalisation: ViewLift’s Manik Bambha

Founded in 2008 by Manik Bambha, Rick Allen, Ted Leonsis, and Victor Block, ViewLift is a cloud-native platform that offers a complete end-to-end solution to content owners to distribute and monetize their content across multiple device platforms, including web, mobile, over-the-top, connected TV, smart TVs and gaming consoles. With a presence across North America, Europe, and Asia, ViewLift’s clientele is spread across media & entertainment, sports, and broadcasting. ViewLift is also the tech partner for Bengali OTT platform  Hoichoi.

In conversation with Adgully, Manik Bambha, Co-founder & President, ViewLift, talks about the company’s plans in India a well as global expansion, industry trends, and other aspects. Excerpts:

Please take us through ViewLift’s journey to date, and its future growth plans in India and globally.

ViewLift is a global business-to-business software company that offers clients around the world end-to-end on-demand and live video streaming solutions, across the web and all major over-the-top devices. ViewLift has created and operates applications (digital channels) native to each device platform for content owners in sports, entertainment, broadcasting, publishing, fitness, gaming, and more.

ViewLift operates globally. In India, ViewLift has been the technology partner for Hoichoi, one of the earliest and most successful OTT services in a regional language. Since then, ViewLift has powered some of the leading D2C VOD services in India and APAC. Some of our clients include Hoichoi, Oho Gujarati, Kanccha Lannka and Chorki (from Bangladesh).

Globally, ViewLift provides its services to sports leagues and clubs/ teams, production houses and distribution companies and TV station groups and broadcasting companies. Some of the top clients that we have onboard with us are:

• Media & Entertainment: Hoichoi, MyoutdoorTV, Here TV, Marquee TV, and Chorki, etc.
• Sports: Supercross, Professional Fighters League, LNP, MotoAmerica, Buzzer, etc.
• Broadcasting: TEGNA, Nexstar Media Group, KSL TV, etc.

What is the USP that differentiates you from the rest?

We are technology support providers and don’t compete with any service providers like Netflix or Disney+ Hotstar. Our clients offer their own unique content and consumer solutions to audiences who are passionate about the specific topics; they are not competing with general entertainment services.

Do you have plans to foray into the overseas markets?

Yes, definitely we are planning to expand further in Europe. We also plan to double our clients based out of India and work closely with them to showcase regional content, the consumption of which is increasing at a very fast pace in the Indian market. North America and Latin America will continue to be our focus markets as we move forward.

Ad-supported video is the new hot thing in streaming. Will the SVOD and the AVOD models co-exist in the days to come?

Yes, we believe so; brands will do AVOD for older library content or part of a new show and SVOD for the rest of shows or new releases. Ads play well in the rest of the world, but India is behind in terms of CPMs (cost per million). As marketing costs rise, CPMs will follow.

ViewLift enables all business models for its clients (AVOD, SVOD, PPV, authenticated, FAST, and hybrids of those models). ViewLift charges licence fees for its platform-as-a-service; passes through variable fees for storage, streaming and the like; and where requested by the client, charges software development costs for custom work. 

Airtel recently launched a Metaverse multiplex, a 20-screen platform, where it plans to offer content from OTT partners. How will Metaverse transform the OTT landscape?

Metaverse has become the new reality in today’s world. It will allow people to go to places they would never be able to go, explore things they would never be able to see, and feel things they would never be able to feel. The reality that we are currently living in is not the end-all, be-all. However, Metaverse is a new tech and is not adopted at scale yet for the next five years or so. AR/VR headsets have been here for almost a decade and less than 0.5% of people have ever tried, even if it’s very cost-effective.

What are the latest technological trends in the field?

Technological trends like Quantum Computing, Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, Extended Reality, Edge Computing, Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality, and 5G offer user-friendliness, user engagement and are time-saving and highly interactive. Every OTT platform will offer personalisation. Bundling is already on the way, and bundling wars will get worse. That will cause pressures in the market and de-bundling will happen.