Streaming video is one of the fastest growing markets in the world, with the OTT video industry alone expected to reach $200 billion by 2023. The OTT video ecosystem, short for “over-the-top” video, also includes on-demand video as ad-supported video content, and it’s largely driven by the growth of established Web2 streaming platforms, including Netflix, Hulu, and Disney+.
The streaming video market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 14.3%. source: replay
Although the report predicts that the streaming video business will generate $300 billion in revenue by 2027, the industry’s uneven revenue-sharing mechanism creates an unhealthy balance between value creators and content distribution platforms. The centralized nature of the video streaming ecosystem allows for opaque distribution and leaves the platform with the vast majority of revenue, leaving little value for video creators.
While companies ranging from talent agencies to tech projects exist to represent and license content on behalf of creators, they cannot accurately track revenue and rely mostly on manual record-keeping. Recent strikes by the Writers Guild of America (WGA), Directors Guild of America (DGA) and SAG-AFTRA, the union representing American actors, are a reminder to the film industry that the workers behind streaming shows are woefully underpaid and ill-informed. When will they next get paid, highlighting problems in traditional value distribution models.
Blockchain-based video distribution
One potential solution for mainstream media brands to manage these problems lies in a decentralized, transparent video distribution ecosystem that leverages the traceability and accountability of blockchain technology. replayis a decentralized video streaming protocol that aims to provide transparency to content creators and owners by monitoring content usage during playback and recording all data on a distributed ledger to build a video ecosystem with real-time compensation and fairness. The agreement can also gamify any video application with badges, quests and digital collectibles.
Replay’s first streaming service, Rewarded TV, using Web3 to reward viewers with digital tokens. Users can redeem reward tokens for digital goods, and the entire experience is gamified through features such as leaderboards and competitions.
How decentralized video streaming benefits creators and viewers. source: replay
Using Replay’s asset management portal, creators gain real-time visibility into their content consumption data and gain direct control over their business models. Replay also empowers creators to take charge of their distribution by building first-hand relationships with platforms, publishers, and communities looking to support them.
Replay Joins Cointelegraph Accelerator
Replay has become the latest participant in the Cointelegraph Accelerator Program. Given the growth potential of the Web3-driven video industry, Cointelegraph Accelerator chose Replay because of its US-based team of more than 10 employees from the video industry with experience and a proven track record. Krish Arvapally, CEO of Replay, said: “It is very exciting to be selected by Cointelegraph to participate in this prestigious accelerator program.”
“In an online world increasingly focused on streaming and video, this partnership demonstrates the progress we’ve made in building an open Web3 standard for tracking video engagement and monetization.”
As of May 2023, RewardedTV has 100,000 registered users, over 4,000 video-on-demand (VOD) options and over 120 linear and live channels. The platform provides access to over 20,000 games, including titles from popular brands such as Yu-Gi-Oh!, The Washington Post, and WatchMojo.
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