The use of connected TVs to access web-delivered TV content is taking time to catch on, with fragmentation of user experience being one of the biggest barriers to adoption
Recent industry developments highlighted in our OTT TV Development Tracker demonstrate that, while traditional broadcasters and pay-TV operators still control access to a more comprehensive range of desirable content, it is the web-based alternative providers that are leading the way in evolving the TV user experience. Big name providers such as Google (through Google Play) Hulu, and Netflix have services and brands strong enough to induce significant numbers of consumers to take up their VoD propositions. This is made possible through a continuing succession of device vendor partnerships along with the associated software updates required to maintain compatibility with each device platform as it evolves. A key problem associated with this approach is the resulting fragmentation of the user experience, the quality of which hinges to a great extent on the consumer's choice of device rather than the service itself.
