The DoveRunner Content Security (Multi-DRM) service plans provide MAU (Monthly Active Users) and MAL (Monthly Active Licenses) options. I would like to understand what each option means and how the billing is calculated.
Brief Description
Monthly Active Users (MAU) refers to the number of unique end users who played DRM-protected video content at least once during a given month. Even if a single user watches multiple different videos during that period, the user is counted only once.
Monthly Active Licenses (MAL) refers to the number of DRM licenses issued during a month. Although there may be minor differences depending on service behavior, in most cases MAL closely corresponds to the total number of DRM content playback attempts made by all users of the service.
Detailed Information
How MAU pricing is calculated
To use the MAU-based plan, a unique user identifier (user_id) must be provided when generating a DRM license token or authentication data (Auth data) for callback. The MAU charge is calculated based on the number of unique user IDs collected by the DoveRunner server during the month.
If the same fixed user_id value is reused for multiple users, MAU calculation is not possible and the MAU plan cannot be applied. For client environments where applying a user ID is difficult, such as set-top box devices, a unique device ID may be used instead as the user_id value.
When the MAU plan is suitable
The MAU plan is advantageous for services where the number of content playbacks is high relative to the number of users. This typically applies to subscription-based (SVOD) or advertising-based (AVOD) services where there is no additional charge per playback.
How MAL pricing is calculated
MAL charges are calculated based on the total number of DRM licenses issued during the month. Regardless of the number of users, billing is determined by how many times DRM content is played across the entire service.
When the MAL plan is suitable
The MAL plan is suitable for services where the number of content playbacks is relatively low compared to the number of users. This typically applies to TVOD (Transactional Video On-Demand) business models, where users are charged per playback.
Comparing plans using the pricing calculator
If you have estimated MAU and MAL values, you can use the pricing page linked below to compare the expected charges for each plan and determine which option is more suitable for your service.