Weaknesses of Mobile Streaming Applications

by Emma Dallas | December 20, 2018 8:45 am

Streaming video, audio, and multimedia make 63% of the internet traffic and 44% of this traffic stand for mobile. Streaming media is the method used to deliver digital multimedia elements[1] – usually video or audio – from a data streaming service provider to an end user. It is the alternative to downloading the entire file before you can watch or listen to it. This reason together with the growing popularity of mobile devices and their multi-functionality make mobile streaming applications almost as popular as instant coffee.

Must-have features of mobile streaming applications

We all know that demand breeds competition on the multimedia market. The more functions your streaming application has, the better. They are so numerous that startups that present mobile streaming applications successfully compete with such leading players as BroadcastMe, Periscope, Deezer, etc. Among the must-have features every popular app has there are:

Majority of the existing mobile streaming applications have a common set of functions with few interesting features. This segment presents massive opportunities for fresh ideas to be realized in a new customized product. Users appreciate such products as the statistics[2] show that mobile streaming traffic is constantly increasing.

Weaknesses of multimedia applications

Testing of solutions for online music streaming requires the verification of a number of factors. QATestLab[3] as an independent testing provider with 5-year experience in testing the mobile streaming applications defines their most common weaknesses:

• platforms’ incompatibility while exchanging music between users
• errors when purchasing additional options/subscription
• the application fails to support various audio and video file formats
• failures in compiling and editing playlists
• difficulties in sharing audio files with others via application
• problems with listening tracks of various labels
• fails with online/offline streaming
• issues with booking unique live performers

All these faults prevent users from getting a flawless and stable stream of media content. As for the product owners, they often get complaints from users and therefore lose their clients because of the low quality of the product. Is it possible to avoid these issues and get a thorough testing of a software?

Ways to avoid the common pitfalls in testing a multimedia application

Professional testing mitigates risks of a possible product failure. To design an effective testing strategy one should consider the specifics of a software under test, available requirements and release date. To perform high-quality QA of multimedia applications, the following issues should be of higher priority to check:

1. Verify the performance of your product on different mobile devices so that your consumers do not refuse to use the product due to the incorrect operation on one of the popular devices.

2. Check the correctness of the application’s functionality for you not to lose users who have encountered failures/errors when purchasing additional options/subscription, etc.

3. Examine the social functions such as registration/authorization/sharing to take into consideration clients who actively use social networks to access the product and enter non-standard requests.

4. Check the proper functioning of the application using different data transfer networks so that your users have high-quality and uninterrupted access to your product.

5. Verify the memory consumption/resources of the device as users may refuse the product due to its large size.

In general, testing of online music streaming software requires the verification of a number of factors. Not to miss important aspects, it is better to create test documentation including Test Plan[4], Checklists, and Software Requirements[5] description. This will help to ensure the stable stream of media content and seamless user experience.

Related Posts:

• Streaming Industry Trends: How Do Business Deal With It?[6]
• Video Downloading Software: Сommon Bottlenecks and their Solutions[7]
• Why Some Testers Tend to Complicate Everything?[8]

Source URL: https://blog.qatestlab.com/2018/12/20/mobile-streaming-applications/

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