Launching an OTT platform is no longer the hard part. With today’s modular solutions, a league, federation, or club can be streaming live matches and highlights within days.
The real challenge? Making it sustainable.
Too often, organisations focus on surface-level numbers: total viewers, social media reach, or video impressions. These look good in a presentation, but they don’t tell you if your platform is growing, retaining, and monetising fans in a healthy way.
To really understand the performance of a streaming service, three subscriber metrics matter most: Churn Rate, Average Revenue Per User (ARPU), and Lifetime Value (LTV).
Let’s explore why these are so important and how to put them into practice.
1. Churn Rate – How Fast Are Fans Walking Away?
Churn rate measures how many subscribers stop using your service over a given time period. In sports, churn tends to spike when a season ends, a tournament wraps up, or a team is eliminated.
Why it matters:
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A high churn rate means your platform is a revolving door. You are constantly spending on marketing to replace lost users.
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Even small improvements have a big impact. Reducing churn by 5 to 10 percent can stabilise long-term revenues.
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It highlights whether fans see your OTT as a one-off event channel or as a continuous destination.
How to reduce churn:
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Offer content beyond matchday: highlights, archive games, behind-the-scenes videos, or exclusive interviews.
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Experiment with flexible access: seasonal passes, PPV for single events, or discounted bundles.
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Communicate consistently. Use push notifications and newsletters to remind fans of what they are missing if they don’t log in.
With STRIDE, for example, sports organisations can combine live matches with VOD libraries, gamification, and multi-language support. This keeps fans engaged even in the off-season.
2. Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) – Beyond the Subscription Fee
ARPU calculates how much revenue, on average, you generate from each subscriber. While it might sound simple, ARPU reveals whether your monetisation strategy is actually working.
Why it matters:
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It shows if your platform is maximising each fan relationship, not just growing subscriber numbers.
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Higher ARPU can offset slower audience growth.
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It identifies whether upselling opportunities like merch, tickets, or premium match packages are converting.
How to increase ARPU:
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Introduce tiered subscriptions: a basic plan plus premium matchday or all-access bundles.
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Add cross-sells and upsells: merchandise, ticket offers, or digital collectibles.
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Activate sponsors in smarter ways: branded highlights, interactive overlays, or in-stream advertising.
STRIDE comes with flexible monetisation tools, including PPV, subscriptions, ad inventory, and sponsorship activations. These give rights holders different levers to grow ARPU over time.
3. Lifetime Value (LTV) – The True Worth of a Fan
LTV is the most strategic metric. It calculates the total value of a subscriber across their entire journey with your platform. Unlike ARPU, which looks at a snapshot, LTV shows the long-term payoff of keeping a fan engaged.
Why it matters:
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It gives clarity on whether your digital ecosystem is sustainable.
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A strong LTV makes forecasting and sponsorship discussions far more credible.
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It connects directly to churn and ARPU. Reduce churn, increase ARPU, and LTV rises automatically.
How to increase LTV:
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Focus on fan identity. With WICKET, sports organisations can unify logins across OTT, websites, fantasy games, and apps. This turns anonymous viewers into known fans.
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Build loyalty flows. Reward long-term subscribers with discounts, giveaways, or exclusive Q&As.
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Use data-driven segmentation. Tailor offers by geography, device, or fan behaviour using the insights gathered via CIAM.
UMPIRE, TISA’s CMS, also plays a role by making content publishing faster and more personalised. This ensures that fans always have fresh reasons to return.
How These Metrics Work Together
Churn, ARPU, and LTV are not separate silos. They reinforce one another:
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Lower churn means fans stay longer.
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Higher ARPU means more value per fan.
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Stronger LTV means a healthier long-term business.
When measured consistently, they create a data-driven foundation for strategic growth. For example:
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A drop in ARPU might signal weak monetisation offers.
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A rise in churn could mean your off-season content strategy needs attention.
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Tracking LTV allows you to predict revenue and set realistic targets for marketing or sponsorship.
The Product Layer – Turning Metrics Into Action
One of the biggest advantages of an integrated ecosystem is that these metrics are not abstract. They are measurable and actionable:
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STRIDE (OTT) powers subscriptions, PPV, ads, and sponsorship activations that directly impact ARPU.
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UMPIRE (CMS) streamlines content creation and management, helping reduce churn through consistent publishing and personalisation.
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WICKET (CIAM) unifies fan identity, enabling segmentation, targeted offers, and long-term loyalty flows that raise LTV.
Together, these tools form a closed loop. Fans join, engage, spend, and stay. And the numbers show whether it is working.
Closing Thoughts – Building Value That Lasts
In sports, passion gets fans through the door. But sustainable digital growth requires more than passion. It requires the right metrics.
Churn shows if fans are staying.
ARPU shows if they are spending.
LTV shows if your digital strategy has a future.
By focusing on these three numbers, and using platforms like STRIDE, UMPIRE, and WICKET to influence them, sports organisations can move from chasing views to building lasting value.
Because in the end, it is not about how many people tuned in once. It is about how many fans come back tomorrow, next month, and next season.
