Today there are many OTT platforms, but not all can provide their customers with quality services; they even offer them great content. In this case, you must conduct comprehensive testing to identify errors that may prevent your business from succeeding.
What is OTT testing, and why is it needed?
OTT (Over-The-Top) is a platform that delivers multimedia content over the Internet. Many associate this only with standard streaming platforms, but it also includes messaging and voice calling services over the Internet (such as Skype).
OTT testing https://testfort.com/ott-testing is a test of streaming software platforms, how well it can perform the necessary functions, the quality of the infrastructure, and much more. Thanks to such tests, you will be able to identify the slightest errors in the software that can negatively affect the quality of the project.
A key indicator of OTT platforms' effectiveness is ensuring a smooth interaction with the client. The better you understand customers' wishes and needs, the better you will be at guessing their desires and providing quality services.
Imagine if you are watching a football match, and at the crucial moment, the video stops and loads very slowly. Most likely, you will refuse to use this platform in the future and will not advise it to your friends and acquaintances. Thus, for your business to be successful, you must ensure that all network components are working correctly.
Main types of testing
There are several testing types, but not all of them are useful for OTT platforms. For this type of software, the following types of tests are needed:
- Flow testing. It allows you to check the quality of the interface, user profiles, navigation, subscription plans, and more.
- Domain testing. It includes 3 types of tests - content management, integration systems, and usability.
- Stress Testing. When many people use the platform simultaneously, it can fail, so you need to check the performance and resistance to stress.
- Test automation. Automated testing is ideal for testing vulnerabilities, payment methods, and other metrics.
- Network testing. It modulates different kinds of network speeds to test the quality of the content under other conditions.
- Device testing. Most OTTs are cross-platform, which means they should work equally well on smartphones, PCs, and smart TVs on different operating systems.
Thus, testing allows you to perform a deep analysis of your software, allowing you to identify more errors that can negatively affect the quality of service and content in general.
When is testing necessary?
Many believe testing should be performed only before the product enters the market, but practice shows this approach needs to be corrected.
Testing streaming applications should be started at the first stages of development. Once programmers have determined what tools they will use to create software, they can build a testing strategy.
A large team of specialists is working on creating complex software like an OTT platform, where each person performs specific tasks - creating separate modules. Each such module should be tested separately to make sure that there are no errors in it.
After the work on the modules is over, you need to connect them into one whole; at this stage, most errors appear. Testing allows you to identify the minor problems you can fix before the product is released to the market.
But most importantly, if you want your business to be successful, testing must be done regularly after the project's release. As the platform becomes more popular, new bugs may appear, and the load on the software may increase.
Also, if you notice that your platform's statistics are dropping (decreasing subscribers, people spending less time watching videos, etc.), the only way to find the cause is to do some testing.
Why is testing so crucial for OTT platforms?
For your OTT platform to be successful and in demand, you must ensure that you provide quality services and that users like your content. Steve Jobs once said that technology development is based on making them so that you do not even notice them in everyday life. Thus, testing allows you to ensure that all technical processes go unnoticed by your users.
So you need to pay special attention to the following aspects:
- Buffer filling time;
- Total download time;
- Total playback time;
- Lag time ratio;
- Total delay time and so on.
The better you can learn the technical characteristics of your software, the better you will understand what you need to work on to be more successful. To stay competitive, you need to improve and scale constantly.
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