Over-the-top (OTT) media services, to put it simply, are subscription services that are meant to either replace or add on to the traditional TV viewing experience. Unlike TV, they do not require you to subscribe to any cable or satellite bundle, offering you a lot of modularity with which to play around.
Consider your average cable or satellite TV subscription, which does not only tend to be pricy but also limited in regards to what it offers. As weird as it might sound, the vast majority of channels that come with a bundle subscription make it worse, not better, as you pay extra for content that you’re not even interested in.
What’s the point of paying good money to be able to watch the History Channel when all you’re interested in is CNN Sports? That’s where OTT services come in, allowing you to subscribe to bundles that have been tailored to satisfy the needs of certain people. We’re talking about you, sports fans.
There are many advantages to subscribing to an OTT service instead of traditional TV, the first of which is a highly reduced cost. Everything that you can do with cable or satellite you can do through an OTT service, since having the internet is the only requirement to subscribing for one, which opens many windows.
There’s a wealth of information out there to be gleaned by the enterprising intellectual, whether related to, say, biology, or, more appropriately, sports. Traditional TV might allow you to watch a (scheduled) sports game, and a commentary might follow soon after, but if you want more specific information, then how are you going to find it?
That’s right. Through the internet. OTT services have slowly gained the upper hand over traditional TV, with many people from across the world having eschewed the old for the new. Making room for change is much easier when change brings nothing but benefits.
Take messaging, for example. Previously, it was done through SMS services provided by your phone carrier. This meant having to pay for the privilege of letting your nan know which recipe you used to bake those awesome cookies she was impressed with. Now, you can send her the recipe through Whatsapp, a free messaging service that makes use of your internet to communicate instead of SMS credit.
How Can OTT Streaming Benefit Me?
The main advantage is a highly tailored experience when compared to traditional TV. You don’t have to waste large amounts of money on channels you don’t need. If you’re only interested in watching professional basketball, then you can sign up for a bundle that will provide you with basketball and just basketball.
That’s not all. There are several OTT streaming services that offer, for example, bundles for all manner of sports at a fraction of what you would pay for traditional TV. Furthermore, a true advantage sports fans cherish is the possibility of not just watching national sports games, but also those from Europe or Asia.
You can also watch OTT services on the go. That means you don’t have to wait until you’re home to watch your favorite sports game. If you’ve just gotten out of work and would like to watch a game you know for a fact you’re going to miss, then all you need to do is to pull out your internet-connected phone and watch it on the way there. Makes public transport so much more pleasant!
While traditional TV follows a set schedule, OTT services give you the opportunity of watching wherever you want, at any time. If a match was set up to be broadcast on cable or satellite at 3 PM, then if you miss it, you miss it. Odds are, you aren’t going to be able to watch it unless you pay for additional services that allow you to download the match locally.
OTT services aren’t restricted to that. If a sports game took place, then odds are it’s been forever archived by the OTT service, meaning that you can watch it regardless of where you are. 1 AM and you have to go to sleep? Well, your preferred OTT service might have to keep you up on account of the fact that it’s just too tempting not to rewatch your favorite sports game.
That’s just a couple of the advantages OTT services offer when compared to traditional TV.
Wherever and Whenever
An OTT streaming service does not constrain you as much as cable or traditional TV. You pay less, have a higher average broadcast quality, don’t have to stomach uninteresting content if you don’t want to, and you can make use of it whenever.
The advantages are manyfold. It’s up to you to determine whether or not it’s the right option for you. One thing is certain, though – OTT sports streaming services are supplanting the traditional ones.
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