-->
Save your FREE seat for Streaming Media Connect in November. Register Now!

Start-Up Time Rated Most Important Factor for Streaming Services

Article Featured Image

A video's start-up time—the gap between when the viewer hits Play and when their video starts—is seen as the most important factor in online video service provider (OVSP) success, according to a report created by content delivery network Akamai.

Akamai based its report on a survey of over 300 company managers responsible for implementing a streaming video service. All respondents were based in the U.S. and most work for U.S. companies.

In the survey, 76 percent rated start-up time as highly important. That's followed by rebuffers per play and rebuffering rate (both at 70 percent), live latency (66 percent), and bitrate (58 percent).

In 2017, the average video startup time was 4.84 seconds. However, the longest time Akamai found was 6.82 seconds. "A two-second increase in start-up time can result in as much as 50 percent of the audience giving up on playing the video altogether," the report notes.

While start-up times are all-important now, that wasn't always the case. When Akamai ran the same survey in 2017 start-up times came in as the fourth most important factor. At the time, rebuffering was considered the most important item.

"No matter how OVSPs think they’re doing against their KPIs today, they are optimistic for the future," the report notes. "Fifty-five percent believe the quality and reliability of their online service already meet or exceed the quality and reliability of traditional television or will do so within the next six months."

Streaming Covers
Free
for qualified subscribers
Subscribe Now Current Issue Past Issues
Related Articles

Low-Quality Streaming Reduces OTT Viewer Loyalty, Finds Akamai

Using biometric tests, Akamai learned exactly how disengaged and unhappy viewers become after experiencing even minor streaming issues.

Kaltura TV Platform Gets Akamai Predictive Content Downloading

Targeted at media companies, the service will intelligently learn what content consumers enjoy and download it before they ask.

Akamai Announces Broadcast-Quality Live Linear Streaming Solution

With LiveOrigin, Akamai hopes to make live linear streams as reliable as broadcast, with low latency and an emphasis on content ingestion.