The Indonesian streaming platform has made content discovery easier not only just during the holy month, but for general content discovery

In Asia and other places where the holy month of Ramadan is observed before Eid al-Fitr, video-on-demand viewership increases significantly. It is said to peak during Suhur (where individuals seek religious programs to set the tone for a day of fasting and prayer), and just before Iftar, where family-friendly programs are chosen to create a light-hearted atmosphere and spark conversation.

However, when the streaming service’s search bar yields “no results” after multiple attempts to find appropriate content, the anticipation falters. The frustration from failed searches is what one Over-The-Top (OTT) video streaming service has sought to mitigate with technology.

Indonesian conglomerate EMTEK Group has integrated generative AI-powered search capabilities into its Vidio platform across TV, web, and mobile to make content discovery intuitive and seamless for their millions of subscribers.

  • With the AI accurately interpreting the “true intent” behind any search queries, non-specific searches including words such as “Ramadan” will surface seasonally-appropriate content on the first try, instead of users to scour through the entire catalog manually.
  • The search engine is forgiving of typing errors, and even if a particular title is not available on the platform, the AI engine will surface a personalized list of programs that are the next best match.
  • At the back end, processes requiring detailed, tedious manual keyword tagging to improve recommendation accuracy are no longer required. The AI search engine has fully transformed this process by automatically and continuously analyzing and organizing the platform’s entire catalog, including new content.
  • Unlike traditional search engines that rely on literal keyword matches, Vidio’s new AI search , powered by Google Cloud, employs semantic search, which considers the relationships between words, learns from users’ past searches, and deciphers the context behind their queries. This human-like understanding allows the platform to supply highly-relevant results.

By combining AI with deep insights into viewership trends to make original and licensed content more discoverable, Vidio is enhancing user satisfaction and platform stickiness to retain customers loyalty and sustain revenue growth.

According to the group’s Chief Technology Officer, Tommy Sullivan: “We’re committed to maximizing content relevancy, making it seamless for users to find what matters most anytime, on any device… This Ramadan, (the feature) will continue to enhance content discovery in a way that helps our audiences remain focused on faith and family.”

The search feature understands search contexts even when alternative spellings in different languages (e.g., “Ramadan” or “Ramadhan”) are encountered.