Video players are an integral component of every streaming workflow. They enable viewers to watch content — without them, streams have no destination. There are many options available to you, though: you could build your own (which could be costly and time-consuming), use an open-source one, or select a commercial video player.
Commercial video players provide a robust alternative to free players for enterprises seeking advanced capabilities. Players are the most visible part of the streaming experience, so it’s essential to choose one that you want to represent your brand. This post will explore what commercial video players are, their advantages, and what features to look out for.
What is a commercial video player?
A commercial video player is a software solution designed to host, deliver, and play video content. Unlike free or consumer-grade players, commercial video players offer capabilities such as monetization tools, extensive customization options, robust analytics, low-latency streaming, and enhanced security features. They are often embedded in websites or apps, but the “commercial” element means they are tailored for businesses that require more advanced features than what individual content creators would need.
What is a commercial video player used for?
Besides the obvious — playing content — commercial video players serve various purposes for businesses, including:
- Content monetization: Supporting paywalls, subscriptions, and ad integrations (such as client-side, server-side, and server-guided ad insertion).
- Branding and customization: Allowing businesses to customize the player’s design to align with their brand. Examples of customizations include colors, width, control placement (play, pause, volume, etc.), ad formats, and how recommended content is displayed after a video. Commercial players also allow you to watermark your content, protecting it from copyright infringements.
- Secure video delivery: Commercial video players are particularly robust when it comes to protecting intellectual property with digital rights management (DRM) and encryption. “Homemade” players or free versions could be more vulnerable to screen recording and piracy.
- Advanced analytics: In-depth analytics provide insights into viewer behavior and demographics (such as location, age, and content preferences) and stream performance (alerting you to bugs that cause lags, buffering, or video playback inconsistencies).
- Seamless integration: Commercial video players integrate more seamlessly with existing workflows, CMSs, and APIs.
- Consistent experience: People use all kinds of devices — phones, laptops, desktops, tablets, smart TVs, and more. Commercial video players are more likely to be compatible with them all, allowing you to ensure a consistent brand experience no matter what device your audience is watching on.
Who needs a commercial video player?
For smaller-scale or independent creators, free or open-source video players may suffice. Commercial video players, however, are appropriate for a different range of industries and use cases, such as:
- Enterprise organizations that provide corporate communications and training,
- Educational institutions that deliver online courses and lectures,
- Media and entertainment companies that stream movies, shows, and live events,
- eCommerce platforms that integrate product videos and live shopping to boost sales,
- Marketing teams that hope to enhance campaigns with branded, interactive videos,
- And many more!
What are the Benefits of a Commercial Video Player?
Faster go-to-market speed
Commercial video players boast an “off-the-shelf” and adaptive technological nature. If you choose a free or open-source player, you’ll have to integrate the player into your broader streaming workflow, which could take a great deal of trial and error before playback is the experience you want it to be. A commercial player, on the other hand, does not require manual updates, integrates into your workflow seamlessly, and includes premade features you might not have the in-house resources to develop yourself.
Higher video playback performance
While many open-source video players are high-quality, commercial players have professional teams behind them who are consistently improving playback, adding features, and fixing bugs. In Dolby’s case, our in-house adapted bitrate algorithm is uniquely designed to prioritize performance, quality, and bandwidth, which enable lightning-fast startup time and minimal rebuffering in case of network uncertainty. Compared to the standard two-factor open-source approach (quality and bandwidth), you’ll quickly notice the additional power and flexibility.
We also optimize performance on specific platforms. For example, WebOS and Tizen Smart TV devices have historically lacked performance standards in older models, but Dolby’s video streaming SDKs provided with our commercial video player are made to ensure smooth video playback even on such devices.
Future-proof
Manual maintenance comes with the territory of free video players. The teams behind their commercial counterparts are constantly keeping their technologies cutting-edge, granting your business an advantage as new features come out and audience expectations change. The overall video industry also moves at a swift pace — making keeping up with the latest innovations and regulations challenging — so commercial players keep your viewing experience competitive.
Scalability
Commercial players are more optimized to scale and handle large audiences viewing simultaneously. While other elements of your streaming workflow, such as your CDN and protocols like WebRTC, are especially responsible for scalability, players are the most “visible” component and still need to be able to manage high demand. You don’t want to host a live stream that crashes because too many people were interested!
Monetization
Monetization, of course, is an essential feature for businesses. Players are what enable advertisements, and the commercial variety are created to allow a variety of models like client-side ad insertion, server-side ad insertion, and server-guided ad insertion. Delivering targeted, interactive ads opens up new revenue streams without making them too disruptive to the viewing experience.
Security
Commercial video players help protect sensitive and proprietary content with digital rights management (DRM), encryption, and token authentication. For example, the strongest players prevent screen recording that could lead to content leaks or data breaches.
Commercial video player disadvantages
The disadvantages of a commercial video player are few, but it’s important to discuss those you may encounter and should consider when selecting the right one for your business.
Cost: Commercial video players come with a wide range of price tags, such as subscription or licensing fees. These costs can add up for small businesses.
Complexity: Depending on the solution, some video players may require technical expertise to integrate and manage. Make sure you pick a user-intuitive or no-code player if you don’t have the manual resources on your team to oversee this kind of labor.
Overhead: Maintenance, updates, and extensive customization may demand additional resources.
Examples of commercial video players
There are a variety of commercial video players on the market, but some of the most popular you’re likely to come across include:
THEOplayer: Now part of Dolby, THEOplayer has long been a go-to solution for broadcast and media companies, known for its widespread compatibility and robust DRM support. THEOplayer is now part of Dolby’s streaming workflow, so you can take advantage of our truly end-to-end solution that grants you mastery over your real-time streaming projects from encoding to playback.
Muvi: A popular solution for OTT platforms and customizable player designs.
JW Player: A renowned player for its speed and flexibility.
Brightcove: Offers extensive analytics and enterprise-grade solutions.
Kaltura: An open-source platform with versatile deployment and paid options.
Comparing top commercial video players
| Feature | THEOplayer (Dolby) | Muvi | JW Player | Brightcove | Kaltura |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Security | DRM, Tokens | DRM | DRM | DRM, Encryption | DRM, Encryption |
| Customization | Extensive | High | Moderate | High | High |
| Compatibility | High | Moderate | High | High | High |
| Playback Options | Advanced | Basic | Moderate | Advanced | Advanced |
| Media Formats | Versatile | Versatile | Versatile | Versatile | Versatile |
How to choose the best commercial video player for your business
Ask yourself the following questions when selecting a commercial video player:
What are your needs? This question is big, but you can break it down into needs related to your audience, content type, and business goals. What kind of viewer experience does your audience expect, and how can you exceed those expectations?
On a related note, what kind of customization do you need? Flexibility that aligns with your branding is important unless you want your viewers to watch content on a player that clearly belongs to another company.
What are your security requirements? Ensure the player protects your content against piracy and potential copyright infringements.
What’s your budget? Choose a solution that fits how much you’re willing to spend on a commercial video player without compromising on features. It’s often a smart idea to choose a player that’s already integrated into a more robust video solution so you don’t have to piece the workflow together yourself (and, therefore, spend money on each separate component).
How well does it integrate with the rest of your existing tech stack? A player that’s compatible with your other platforms will save you a great deal of time and effort.
How well does the player perform? Take advantage of free trials to evaluate video playback quality and user experience.
Dolby’s commercial video player
Commercial video players are indispensable tools for businesses that prioritize security, branding, monetization, and providing top-notch viewer experiences. While free players may suffice for personal use, commercial options include advanced features necessary to thrive in a competitive digital environment.
Dolby’s acquisition of THEOplayer means we now offer the leading cross-platform video player available, enabling organizations like yours to take advantage of products including THEOlive and THEOads. With a commercial-grade video player at your disposal, you can manage your streaming workflow from encoding to playback and deliver the most memorable viewing experiences possible for your audience.
