Channel 4 is regarded in the UK as one of the most innovative TV channels in the television industry, commissioning programmes from more than 300 independent production companies.
Since the introduction of digital television, Channel 4 has operated a number of additional TV channels, including E4, More4 and Film4, and continues to expand its online activities and services, for example with channel4.com.
The need for differentiation
In recent years, Channel 4 has seen an enormous increase in online video as a new way to consume content. Internet TV provides content providers with a wealth of new opportunities to reach new audiences and ultimately create new revenue opportunities. Channel 4 quickly recognized the need to deliver a range of innovative new media services to engage new consumers and differentiate itself from competitors. To this end, the channel launched the 4oD (4 on Demand) service for its linear TV programs to enter the on-demand market.
Jen Topping, Business Manager, Online Video, Channel 4 New Media was tasked with introducing Channel 4’s new Internet TV platform and providing an online portal where channel4.com users can view, discuss and interact with short video files. Channel 4 opted against an in-house solution because of the costs, time factors and maintenance fees. This paved the way for a dedicated Internet TV platform provider to provide this service.
The Brightcove solution
Following a formal tender, Channel 4 selected Brightcove as the vendor of its choice to provide a platform for short video files (clips and only material available online on channel4.com). This enabled the channel to integrate video content into most of its online presences (such as its sister site “e4.com”).
“The main reason Brightcove chose Brightcove was because Brightcove’s Internet TV platform stood out clearly from the competition,” Topping said. “Brightcove had a clear understanding of a channel’s needs and had a track record with customers in the media industry, including other channels that do exactly what we do.
According to Topping, Brightcove Channel 4 offered some key capabilities that made the difference:
Longevity – As Brightcove continues to invest in delivery technology to bring the platform up to date, Channel 4 could rely on its Internet TV offering to grow organically to meet the needs of its online audience in the future.
Flexibility – Brightcove knows exactly what media providers need to run their online businesses, and has provided the platform solution with integrated flexibility. Channel 4 was able to align its clip and online only video product planning with Brightcove to maximize return on investment and create new potential through technology integration.
Efficiency Channel 4 was looking for a solution to deliver short online video content as quickly as possible. Brightcove had the infrastructure, expertise and knowledge to deliver the platform much faster than an in-house solution could. In addition, no dedicated Channel 4 web development team had to be assigned to this task.
Controlled marketing – The platform solution enables insertion and tracking of advertising and geo-blocking on a case-by-case basis.
Greater acceptance
“In the last six months, our digital offering has seen 21% more video accesses than in the same period before, when we weren’t using the Brightcove platform,” Topping said.
“Deploying the Brightcove player platform has greatly improved the turnaround times required to publish media to the web, allowing Channel 4 to deliver much faster content throughput. Brightcove’s encryption tools are extremely reliable, and inserting metadata is a simple and accurate “process.