Building for another platform. What to do?
Hey all,
So I work for an online video platform ... Think Wistia, Brightcove, Vidyard etc.
Customers commonly ask for some features we don't have like password protected videos and "netflix like" resume playback from last position.
I've thought how I could create these types of things to integrate with the platform I currently work for. My main question is if I am just creating plugins that are to be used on another platform, because the rest of the video delivery portion is already solved and quite complex, is my business just consulting/agency or would I go the route of like Domo or Tableau where they are a platform that integrates with many others?
Thank you
Are you asking if your business model should be creating the addon platform or do addon development consultancy?
Creating an addon platform really depends on the product that will be used with the addons. Does it support addons? Might the product developer branch out and provide an official addon store, thereby significantly threatening your platform? A platform requires lots of difficult work because your customers are both seller and buyers of addons, and you also need to be a community player who supports the core product.
Being a third party addon developer is a much smaller, less risky and cheaper undertaking. You can create totally custom addons or generic addons that are used by many customers. You can experiment and fail much faster than when creating a platform. Also, you only have to worry about buyers and providing them with great customer experience.
A third option is convincing your employer into creating an official app store and then create apps for the store yourself, thereby satisfying their customers needs without having to get burdened by feature creep and increasing recruiting costs.
Thank you for your detailed answer. So I guess my scenario could be analogous to creating a WP plugin, only there is no marketplace. My "product" is a plugin(s) to be leveraged by video platforms.
Great example! WP is the ultimate third party eco system because platforms like Theme Forest or WooCommerce thrives despite there being a totally free, official and built-in platform.