A VOD platform for creator-led video businesses
Sell access to your recorded library through subscriptions, one-time purchases and free previews. Choose web access or own-brand mobile and TV apps on the appropriate plan.
- ✓ Hosted in the EU
- ✓ Your subscribers stay yours
- ✓ Apps for web, iOS, Android, Apple TV and Android TV
What is a VOD platform?
A VOD platform is the software that stores, organizes and streams a library of recorded video on demand. It controls who can watch, takes payment for access, and delivers playback to a browser or an app, so a viewer starts any title at the moment they choose.
Propel is a managed service for creators, rather than cloud infrastructure you assemble yourself.
How a creator VOD platform works
Six stages to check when evaluating a managed VOD service. Confirm Propel's exact workflow in your walkthrough.
- Ingest
Upload recordings. Check accepted formats and how the platform prepares them for playback.
- Metadata
Titles, descriptions and thumbnails help viewers choose. Confirm which fields you can edit.
- Library structure
Group recordings into a catalog. Ask which collections and filters are supported.
- Access control
Define paid access and free previews. Check how purchases and subscriptions unlock content.
- Playback
Try a recording on each screen you need. Check quality and resume behavior.
- Reporting
Ask which viewing and sales reports are available, and what you can export.
VOD monetization models
Subscriptions, purchases and free previews are supported. Advertising is not.
- SVOD — subscription
- A recurring payment buys the whole library while it is paid. Supported.
- TVOD — one-time purchase
- One payment buys one course, program or class. Supported.
- Free previews
- Open videos that let someone judge your teaching before paying. Supported.
- AVOD — advertising
- Free viewing paid for by ads inside your content. Not supported. There is no ad tier.
What to look for in a VOD platform
Seven questions that separate platforms once the marketing pages look identical. Ask them of us too.
| Criterion | Ask any vendor | Why it decides |
|---|---|---|
| Viewer experience | Can a subscriber find a video in two taps and resume it later? | Libraries people cannot navigate get cancelled. |
| Screens | Which devices ship today, under whose brand? | A device on a roadmap is not a device you can sell on. |
| Payments | Which methods, and who is the merchant? | Merchant decides who carries tax and refunds. |
| Cost model | Flat, per subscriber, revenue share, or metered? | The billing unit decides what growth does to your margin. |
| Rights and access | How is access enforced when a login is shared? | Your library is the business; enforcement is part of the product. |
| Reporting | What can you export, at what granularity? | You cannot fix churn you cannot break down. |
| Ownership | Who holds subscribers, payments, store accounts and data if you leave? | The only criterion you cannot revisit later. |
Tell us your library size and the screens you need. If Propel is the wrong tool, we say so.
From library to launch
What you do, what Propel does, and where the app stores get a vote.
- Decide what you sell
Subscriptions, one-time purchases, or both.
- Upload and structure
Prepare recordings, titles and thumbnails. Confirm the catalog workflow before launch.
- Apply your brand
Prepare your name, logo and colors; confirm the controls included in your plan.
- Set prices and previews
You set what a member pays and what stays free.
- Publish the apps
Web goes live on your side; mobile and TV apps go through store review.
Store accounts and review timing are settled with us before launch. No timeline is stated here.
- Open, then review
Invite your audience. Use member feedback to decide what to film next.
Web, mobile, and TV experience
Web, iOS, Android, Apple TV and Android TV. Your plan determines the storefront and app branding.
| Screen | Status | What a subscriber does there |
|---|---|---|
| Web | Available | Signs up, pays, watches in the browser. |
| iOS | Available | Your app on iPhone and iPad. |
| Android | Available | Your app on Android phones and tablets. |
| Apple TV | Available | Your app on the television. |
| Android TV | Available | Your app on the television. |
| Any other device or store | Not supported | Not on the roadmap shown here. |
Ownership and publishing detail: branded streaming apps.
Cost and operating model
Budget beyond your plan. Compare plans and model revenue on the pricing page.
- Your Propel plan
- €199/mo on Studio, €599/mo on Brand. No percentage of your sales is taken on any plan. All prices exclude VAT.
- Payment processing
- Charged on what your subscribers pay. Billed to you separately from your plan.
- App-store commission
- Budget for store fees where applicable. Confirm the purchase routes before modelling costs.
- Tax
- Check digital-sales obligations with your accountant.
- Your own production
- Filming, editing and teaching remain your costs.
Who Propel fits
A creator-led video business with an audience already in hand.
Propel fits if
- ✓ You have recorded video, or can film consistently.
- ✓ You have an audience you can invite on day one.
- ✓ You want to sell access to a library, month after month.
- ✓ You want your brand on the apps, not a marketplace listing.
Look elsewhere if
- — You want advertising revenue from free viewing.
- — You need a device or store beyond web, iOS, Android, Apple TV and Android TV.
- — You want a bespoke platform built to your specification.
- — You are looking for an audience — Propel does not supply viewers.
- — Your business is live classes only, with nothing recorded.
What Propel does not provide
If any of these are essential to you, Propel is not the right fit.
- No advertising model
Propel supports subscriptions, one-time purchase, free previews. There is no ad-supported tier.
- No screens beyond the four
Apps ship for Web, iOS, Android, Apple TV, Android TV. Nothing else is promised.
- No custom development
You get the product as it ships, under your brand.
- Migration is a paid add-on on Studio
Done-for-you migration is €490 on Studio and included on Brand.
- No published subscriber limit
Library allowances are on the pricing page; subscriber limits are not stated. Ask before you plan around one.
- No audience supplied
Propel is where your audience watches. Finding it stays your job.
VOD platform FAQ
What is a VOD platform? +
Software that stores, organizes and streams a library of recorded video on demand: it controls who can watch, takes payment, and delivers playback to a browser or app.
How much does a VOD platform cost? +
On Propel: €199/mo on Studio or €599/mo on Brand plus a one-time €3,500 app launch, excluding VAT, with no percentage of your sales taken. Add payment processing, app-store commission on in-app purchases, tax where liable, and your production.
Does Propel support advertising? +
No. Subscriptions, one-time purchase and free previews only.
Which screens can my subscribers watch on? +
Web, iOS, Android, Apple TV and Android TV. Own-brand native apps come with Brand; both plans include your own domain and own-brand web app.
What are the disadvantages of VOD? +
You must bring an audience and keep the library useful. Recorded classes cannot provide live feedback or individual supervision.