Merging social computing with content: a proposal of a new film platform, Avids

Film consumers are continuously online and active in various social platforms. This phenomenon has led over-the-top (OTT) providers – empowered by social computing technologies – to establish a social media presence and incorporate elements drawn from social media into their services. However, little is known about existing OTT interfaces and their key social features. This study sought to provide a structured categorisation of the most salient social media features of the best-known applications in the OTT video business. In addition, a new social content network model, Avids, was proposed to connect individuals socially through films. Avids reaches beyond more fixed, functionality-based approaches applied in the development of OTT video sites and focuses on components related to sociality. This approach ensures a unified system in which the overall social media setting is embedded in every functional area of the platform’s architecture, thereby allowing applications to trigger and support social behaviours absent from traditional OTT providers. A purpose-built international online survey was administered to 479 film lovers to assess how Avids’ main features compare with traditional OTT video providers. The questionnaire was based on the technology acceptance model. The results confirm the critical role of sociality in film viewing-related activities.