German media company ProSiebenSat.1 has chosen UK-based subscription and billing solutions provider MPP Global to drive its joint OTT platform with Discovery Communications.
“To be successful with the ProSiebenSat.1 Digital products and new OTT platform, we wanted to replace our in-house subscription VOD solution with a much more flexible service to support subscription management and alternative monetisation of our assets. This was when we discovered MPP Global’s eSuite platform,” said Dirk Daumann, CTO of ProSiebenSat.1 Digital.
“We chose eSuite mainly for its feature-richness and complete APIs, especially when it comes to the flexibility in defining products and subscriptions. The platform also brings unique features which provide us with the ability to upsell our services through metering and paywalls,” added Daumann.
“In the future we envisage a model where we let consumers ‘try before sign-up’. So, consumers can watch the start of one of our premium shows for free and, after getting a sneak preview, they can decide if they want to subscribe so they can enjoy the rest of the show. This kind of functionality is essential to the future of the consumer-friendly platform we are developing.”
ProSiebenSat.1 and Discovery joined forces to build the leading German OTT platform by integrating their existing streaming venture 7TV, video-on-demand (VOD) service maxdome and Eurosport Player in one place.
The yet unnamed platform will comprise live-streams, a catch-up service with local content as well as Hollywood productions and sports coverage. It will feature a free, advertising-funded service, a subscription-based advertising-free service and premium packages offering exclusive sports and movies.
Resembling Hulu set up by major broadcasters in the US, ProSiebenSat.1 and Discovery have invited fellow major German public and commercial broadcasters ARD, ZDF and RTL to join the platform scheduled to launch in the first half of 2019.
