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Media & Entertainment Software Development

Streaming, subscription and rights management software built around DRM licensing and territory-based content availability.

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How we work

Streaming platforms and digital publishers answer to constraints most software categories never touch at once: video has to play back reliably across devices and networks through adaptive bitrate streaming, content licensors require DRM before they will hand over their catalog, and subscription pricing has to vary by tier, trial period and sometimes region without breaking entitlement checks.

We build video delivery pipelines on top of AWS Elemental or Mux, integrate Widevine, FairPlay and PlayReady DRM so licensed content actually clears studio requirements, and build subscription and entitlement systems that track exactly what a given account is allowed to watch in a given territory at a given moment.

Captioning and accessibility get built to CVAA and FCC requirements from the start, and recommendation engines are designed to work with the sparse watch history a new subscriber actually has, not just the deep history an established one builds up over months.

The problem

Where media & entertainment software gets hard

  • Video delivery has to work across devices and unreliable networks

    Adaptive bitrate streaming and CDN strategy determine whether a viewer on a slow connection gets a smooth downgraded stream or a stalled one, and getting this wrong is the single fastest way to lose a subscriber.

  • DRM licensing is a requirement, not an option

    Content licensors typically require Widevine, FairPlay or PlayReady DRM before releasing a catalog, and supporting all three (for Android, iOS and other platforms respectively) adds real integration complexity.

  • Subscription billing gets complicated fast

    Free trials, multiple tiers, regional pricing and promotional discounts all interact with entitlement checks, and a bug in that logic either gives away content for free or blocks a paying subscriber.

  • Recommendations have to work for new users with no history

    Most recommendation approaches assume a deep watch history that a new subscriber does not have yet, so a cold-start strategy is a separate design problem, not a smaller version of the main one.

  • Captioning and accessibility are regulatory requirements for video

    The CVAA and related FCC rules require closed captioning for video content that previously aired on television, and general accessibility expectations extend to the entire streaming interface.

  • Rights availability varies by territory and window

    The same title can be licensed for different regions and time windows, and enforcing that correctly requires checking viewer location and license terms on every playback request, not just at catalog publish time.

What we build

Media & Entertainment systems we build

  • Video streaming platform development

    Transcoding and adaptive bitrate delivery pipelines built on AWS Elemental or Mux, tuned for the device mix and network conditions your actual audience uses.

  • DRM integration

    Widevine, FairPlay and PlayReady integration so licensed content plays back correctly across Android, iOS, web and connected TV platforms without violating a licensor's DRM requirement.

  • Subscription billing and entitlement management

    Tiered pricing, free trials and regional pricing logic tied directly to playback entitlement checks, so billing state and content access never drift apart.

  • Content recommendation engines

    Recommendation logic that handles cold-start for new subscribers alongside personalization for established ones, instead of one model tuned only for deep watch history.

  • Ad insertion and monetization

    Server-side and client-side ad insertion integrated with platforms like Google Ad Manager, for ad-supported tiers running alongside subscription tiers.

  • Rights and territory management

    License window and territory checks enforced at playback time, not just catalog publish time, so content availability always reflects the current licensing agreement.

Regulations and standards we design for

  • DMCA safe harbor requirements and takedown process for user-uploaded or licensed content.
  • COPPA requirements for platforms serving content directed at children under 13.
  • CVAA and FCC closed captioning requirements for video content previously aired on television.
  • GDPR and CCPA requirements for viewer data collected through streaming and recommendation systems.
  • WCAG 2.2 accessibility requirements for streaming interfaces and playback controls.

Platforms we integrate with

  • AWS Elemental Media Services and Mux for video infrastructure
  • Widevine, FairPlay and PlayReady DRM
  • Stripe for subscription billing
  • Google Ad Manager for ad insertion
  • Cloudflare and Akamai CDN for content delivery

DRM and rights management across territories

We integrate Widevine, FairPlay and PlayReady together rather than picking one, since a real streaming audience spans Android, iOS, web and connected TV devices that each require a different DRM system. Rights checks run at the moment of playback, evaluating license territory and window against the viewer's location and the current date, so a title that expires from the catalog mid-license actually stops playing rather than relying on a manual catalog update.

Recommendation and personalization with sparse watch history

New subscribers have little or no watch history, so we build a cold-start path (based on genre selection at signup, trending content and catalog metadata) separately from the personalization model used once enough viewing history accumulates. Both paths feed into the same recommendation surface, but the underlying logic and the data each depends on are different enough that treating them as one model produces poor results for new users.

Services

Services for media & entertainment companies

Solutions

Solutions for media & entertainment companies

Technology

Technologies we typically use

FAQ

Media & Entertainment software FAQs

Do we need to support all three major DRM systems for a streaming launch?

Usually yes, if you want to reach Android, iOS and connected TV devices with licensed content, since each platform's native playback path expects a specific DRM system: Widevine, FairPlay or PlayReady. We integrate all three so licensing requirements do not limit which devices your app supports.

How does subscription billing stay in sync with what content a user can actually watch?

We tie the entitlement check directly to the current billing state at the moment of playback, rather than caching access permissions separately, so a trial expiring or a downgrade mid-cycle updates what plays back immediately, not at the next login.

Can a recommendation engine work well for a platform that just launched?

Yes, though it needs a different approach than personalization for an established user base. We build a cold-start path using genre preferences and catalog metadata for new subscribers, separate from the watch-history-driven model used once enough viewing data accumulates.

What closed captioning requirements apply to a new streaming platform?

The CVAA and related FCC rules require captions for video content that previously aired on television with captions, and general accessibility expectations extend to original content as well. We build caption support into the player and content pipeline from launch rather than adding it after a compliance complaint.

How do you enforce that a licensed title is only available in its contracted territory?

We check the viewer's location against the license's territory and window at the moment of playback, not just when the catalog is published, so a title correctly stops playing the moment its license window or territory rights change.

Insights

Planning guides

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