The Unheralded Hero of OTT Integrations —Communication

“Technology alone doesn’t make or break an OTT rollout. People, process, and communication do.”

The telecom industry has been in a constant state of transformation for years now—and I’ve seen this from both sides of the fence. 

From my early days as a monitoring engineer, to leading IT projects at a large telco, and now, for the past four years, working on the vendor side as an OTT solution provider, I’ve watched many projects succeed, stall, or quietly fade into obscurity.

One pattern shows up again and again: 

The technology stack might be flawless.
The business model might be sound. 
And yet… the project fails.

Why?

Because integrating a modern OTT TV platform into an existing telecom ecosystem isn’t just a tech job—it’s an organizational shift. And unless you fix the one thing everyone underestimates—communication—you’re setting yourself up for friction, scope creep, delays, or even total failure.

Let me explain.

Why Big Telcos Struggle With OTT Integration

Launching a new OTT service within a large telecom organization is anything but simple. Complex internal structures, legacy systems, and entrenched workflows often turn what looks like a standard platform rollout on paper into a long-term orchestration across departments, systems, and priorities.

Here’s why:

1. Process Inertia: Many existing business processes—especially across product, marketing, tech support, and customer care—usually aren’t designed to accommodate OTT workflows. Injecting a new platform into these already established structures often feels like forcing a square peg into a round hole. The result? Friction, delays, and endless workaround meetings. And no, updating documentation won’t fix it.
2. Technology: Integrating OTT platforms with legacy Business Support Systems (BSS) is rarely straightforward. Internally, many organizations simply aren’t ready to handle the depth and scope of integration required. Why? Because of outdated tech stacks, systems that weren’t built to interface with third-party solutions, and a heavy reliance on external vendors—some of whom may not be fully aligned with your project timelines or goals.
3. People: Migrating from legacy platforms—including long-standing TV services—to a modern OTT solution isn’t just a technical challenge. It’s an emotional one. People who’ve spent years building and supporting existing systems often feel resistance toward replacing them. Even if the new strategy makes sense on paper, getting full buy-in across departments can be difficult, especially when it threatens to disrupt familiar processes and workflows.

So, what’s the fix?

Communication: The Invisible Architecture Behind Every Successful OTT Launch

Beyond your Gantt charts, Jira tickets, and budget sheets lies a more subtle project infrastructure: communication. And no, I don’t mean “weekly status updates.”

I mean real, intentional, multi-directional communication—the kind that builds trust, aligns expectations, and adapts to change without chaos.

Here are five tactics I’ve seen transform project outcomes, including OTT projects:

1. Create a Single Online Workspace
   • Importance: A single online workspace brings all project-related information, documentation, and communication together in one accessible location.
   • Impact: With a unified space, all teams can collaborate more effectively, share updates faster, and access key resources without confusion. This reduces the risk of miscommunication and ensures that everyone stays aligned, boosting overall project efficiency. Tools like Slack or Discord Spaces are great examples—they let you structure communication by topic or team for easier navigation and quicker context switching.
2. Focus on Partnership
   • Importance: Strong partnerships are essential—they make sure all parties are moving in the same direction and working toward shared goals.
   • Impact: Focus on partnership encourages open communication, mutual support, and resource sharing. This collaborative approach doesn’t just smooth out workflows—it often sparks innovative solutions, and ultimately leads to a more successful launch. 
3. Keep Stakeholders in the Loop (Even When There’s Nothing to Report)
   • Importance: Keeping in touch with stakeholders during project execution is critical. It helps keep expectations aligned, provides timely feedback, and makes it easier to handle changes in scope or deadlines.
   • Impact: Ongoing communication helps stakeholders understand why changes happen and how they will affect the project. It reduces friction, improves adaptability, and keeps the project moving forward. It also helps secure resources when needed, manage risks more proactively, and gives everyone a reason to celebrate milestones together.
4. Responsibility for the Results
   • Importance: Clear responsibilities and accountability for results help everyone understand their role in the project—and what exactly is expected from them. This includes defining measurable goals and key performance indicators from the start.
   • Impact: When people take ownership of outcomes—not just tasks—it builds commitment and motivation. The sense of responsibility drives performance and encourages team members to strive for excellence, ultimately leading to better outcomes for the OTT project.
5. Belief and desire to deliver
   • Importance: Believing in the project’s vision — and genuinely wanting to deliver something great — is what keeps team morale high. This intrinsic motivation often translates into higher levels of creativity, problem-solving, and dedication.
   • Impact: When team members are passionate about the project and believe in its potential success, they are more likely to go above and beyond in their efforts. This positive attitude can influence the overall project culture, leading to enhanced collaboration and a greater likelihood of achieving project goals.

From Theory to Practice: What Actually Happens on the Ground

In projects where none of this is in place — no shared workspace, no real stakeholder engagement, vague responsibilities — things tend to fall apart. I’ve seen delays pile up because teams weren’t aligned, integration tasks stall because no one truly “owned” them, or developers and business teams talk past each other for weeks.

But when communication becomes part of the project structure — not an afterthought — the difference is immediately felt. Project teams make faster decisions, changes are less disruptive, and even difficult phases feel manageable. The entire process runs with less tension.

This isn’t about perfect execution. It’s about creating the conditions for people to actually work together, not just coexist under the same project name.

Why This Really Matters in OTT Projects

Integration projects in the OTT space, especially for large companies, such as telcos, are unpredictable and have their own tempo. You’re often working across multiple legacy systems, vendors, and departments, each with their own timelines, priorities, and ways of working. Without proper communication and clear ownership, things slip. Fast.

The tricky part? Most of the real problems aren’t technical. They’re organizational. You can have the right platform, the right architecture, the right roadmap — and still get stuck because teams didn’t align early, or no one flagged an issue until it was too late.

That’s why I keep coming back to communication. It’s not a “soft skill” or a nice-to-have. It’s the thing that holds all the technical layers together.

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Want to Avoid These Mistakes?

Setplex helps telecom operators accelerate OTT integrations—without tripping over legacy systems, vendor mismatches, or communication failures. Whether you’re planning your first launch or expanding an existing platform, we can help you get there faster (and with fewer headaches).

Connect with Pavel on LinkedIn.
Contact us to see how Setplex enables faster, smoother OTT rollouts.

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