Testing Streaming Bundles and Media Subscriptions

What’s old is new again. Cord cutters once shunned traditional cable packages for more personalized streaming subscriptions. But as streaming providers offer bundles for potential cost savings and convenience for consumers, those subscribers are again embracing broader media packages.

Streaming bundles, however, present a new set of complexities for media and entertainment companies. Everything from billing to account continuity and hardware challenges can spoil the revenue gains and churn reductions these bundles intend. Digital quality was an issue prior to the rapid race to bundle streaming products, and this trend only adds to the challenges.

Let’s dig into the unique complexities of testing streaming bundles, focusing on three primary areas: replicating real-world conditions, understanding user perspectives and ensuring seamless account management.

Replicating real-world conditions

It might be easy to find a tester who can access a streaming media provider’s services. It’s another thing to source testers with the right account status (if any), in the target market who subscribe (or don’t) to the relevant bundled services at the correct tiers of service. Gaps in these real-world conditions lead to friction when the bundle rolls out to subscribers.

Ebook

It’s important to find testers who are existing subscribers to both telecom and media services, which can be particularly challenging when testing integrations and partnerships between these providers. For example, consider a promotion where new subscribers to a particular mobile carrier get a complimentary subscription to a streaming service for a set period. Testing this accurately requires finding testers who meet specific criteria and then ensuring they have the correct devices and operating systems for a representative test cycle. The same goes for cable providers that offer streaming services as a promotion. Organizations must test and certify their set-top boxes and the level of access they provide to streaming platforms: Yet another opportunity for failure and friction in the subscriber experience.

Additionally, testing various user states and subscription tiers helps ensure comprehensive coverage. A user might be an existing telecom customer upgrading to a plan that includes a streaming bundle, or they might be a new customer subscribing to both services for the first time. Each scenario presents unique testing considerations, from validating API connections to ensuring accurate billing and user data migration. Failing to account for these nuances can lead to significant issues down the line that affect revenue, including billing errors and frustrated customers.

Understanding user perspectives

The idea is simple enough: multiple subscription plans bundled into a promotional offering. But, around the world, that promotion can cause confusion around the various billing, account and access options.

Diverse markets bring their own cultural nuances to the table. Users in different regions might have different expectations around billing cycles, payment methods and customer support. In South America, for example, customers are accustomed to prepaid plans, which differ from monthly fees — to speak nothing of the regional availability of the specific providers in the bundle, currency nuances, cross-border access and other challenges.

Consider also the complexities of a household with multiple users, each with their own preferences and viewing habits. How does the streaming bundle handle these individual profiles? Are recommendations tailored to each user? What about the individual — how does the platform minimize their frustration as part of the onboarding process? Streaming brands must account for these user experience concerns, gathering inputs from real in-market customers. Failing to do so can lead to confusion, frustration and churn.

Seamless account management

Billing, integration and user data transfer all need to come together seamlessly with bundled subscriptions. These elements typically involve multiple systems for each provider, introducing a lot of potential for issues.

For example, if a user subscribes to a bundle that includes two different streaming providers, they should be able to log in to both platforms with the same credentials and access their personalized content without any issues. Anything short of that introduces a great deal of friction right from the beginning.

But the complexities go deeper than just logging in. What happens when a user cancels one of the services in the bundle? Is their data retained? Can they easily resubscribe without losing their viewing history or preferences? What about situations where a user has an existing account with one of the services before joining the bundle? What happens to their personalized settings? Do they receive access to the correct tiers of service?

Test all of these scenarios thoroughly to ensure a smooth and consistent user experience. Without this level of attention to detail, companies risk damaging partner and customer relationships, hindering the success of their bundled offerings and hurting their reputation.

The imperative of streaming bundles and real-world testing

Streaming bundles offer a compelling value proposition for consumers, as well as a promising revenue stream for media companies still trying to achieve consistent profitability. Any proven path to capturing and securing revenue over the long term will be seen as a strategic imperative. While there are concerns about whether bundles can recapture the profitability of traditional cable TV bundles, there is also optimism that they can help reduce churn and lower customer acquisition costs.

By addressing quality challenges head-on, companies can go a long way toward maximizing the potential of bundled offerings and satisfying customers. As the market evolves, companies will need to focus on optimizing user experience, managing churn and ensuring profitability. This requires a deep understanding of user behavior, market trends and the competitive landscape, all of which are dynamic and require constant vigilance. The key lies in striking the right balance between content offerings, pricing strategies and digital quality.

The last of that trio is where we enter the frame. Applause offers a comprehensive suite of testing solutions that help name-brand media and entertainment companies navigate the complexities of delivering to a demanding audience in a competitive marketplace. From functional testing to user experience testing and payment testing, Applause provides the insights and expertise needed to deliver high-quality streaming experiences.

Manual Functional Testing helps root out potential defects before they hit subscribers’ screens. Applause can assemble a team of testers with various devices (smart TVs, smartphones, tablets) and operating systems to ensure seamless integration between platforms. Testers assess specific scenarios, such as switching between live TV and on-demand content within the bundle, verifying that user accounts are properly linked, and confirming that features like parental controls and closed captioning function correctly across all platforms.

Applause can also recruit testers who match the target demographic (gamers, families, new-market customers, etc.) to evaluate the user experience of the bundle. With User Experience Testing, our team gathers feedback from our community on the onboarding process, the ease of navigating between different services and the overall intuitiveness of the bundled offering. UX feedback helps identify pain points, such as confusing navigation menus or a cumbersome account linking process, to refine the user experience and improve customer satisfaction.

With our Payment Testing solution, Applause leverages its global community to conduct payment testing with real users using various payment methods (credit cards, digital wallets, etc.) in different regions. Testers complete the subscription process, verifying details such as the discounted price applying correctly, recurring billing is set up accurately and users receive clear billing statements. Real-world payment testing helps identify any billing discrepancies, ensures compliance with local payment regulations and builds trust with customers by providing a transparent and reliable payment experience.

Only real-world testing helps uncover bundle friction and defects that degrade the user experience. Let’s talk today about how we can help you achieve your digital quality goals.

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