Balancing the Quality and Cost of Online Video

By Benny Fischer, Senior Architect
Limelight Networks

Back before video on the Internet was supposed to make money, posting content was a relatively simple exercise. YouTube showed that you could grab attention with a well-timed home movie, and if the quality of the viewing experience left something to be desired, that hardly mattered in the free-video realm.

Today, however, content providers are doing everything possible to make Internet video profitable. While YouTube remains the king of amateur video, professional producers looking to support an online business are learning just how complicated it is to host, format, and deliver high-quality Internet video.

To save on the cost of hiring a service provider, many content owners start out by managing their own video delivery. This approach is fine in small-scale businesses, but it becomes perversely and increasingly expensive as business grows. You need the bandwidth capacity to handle traffic spikes, the know-how to maintain a quality viewing experience to keep viewers tuned in, and the ability to measure viewing results to attract advertisers and assess areas for improvement.

As the methods for viewing video continue to grow—with new software players, new hardware devices, and a range of Internet connection types—content owners also need to be well-versed in an almost-endless variety of end-user environments. The IT component can be so complicated that it overrides a necessary focus on content and business development. And if IT is not a core competency, you may find that lack of technical expertise can directly undermine your business success.

This is where an outsourced delivery solution comes into play. While outsourcing content delivery may look like a costly option compared to the do-it-yourself route, it can actually help you save and ultimately make money by decreasing the overall cost of doing business and ensuring that you can support service growth well into the future.

Many Paths to ROI

Whether your business model is based on advertising, subscription fees, or pull-through purchases, the goal is always to increase audience size and engagement. Unfortunately, it costs money to support large audiences and create a quality viewing experience. Using a content delivery network (CDN) partner can save money in a number of ways.

First, with bandwidth available on demand, content providers using a CDN partner can spend money on capacity only when needed, rather than paying for high levels of bandwidth at all times. This is critical when you consider that viewership patterns can change significantly, and that you want to be able to support any new influx of viewers rather than drive them away with a stuttering stream.