There is a lot to learn about live streaming services for professional use. However, because a top professional-grade live streaming platform is a very powerful broadcasting tool that solution providers update on a regular basis, it is difficult to find comprehensive reviews and comparisons. It can be difficult for new broadcasters looking to get into thetv live streaming services to objectively assess the best platform for live streaming. We’ve reviewed 15 of the best live streaming platforms for professional broadcasters, as well as 7 social video streaming alternatives that are also useful for businesses, giving you an in-depth look at the top 15 live streaming service.The goal of this comparison is to assist you in making an informed decision about which streaming platform to use for your broadcasting needs.
What precisely is a Live Streaming Platform?
In the last decade, technology for live video streaming platforms and OVPs has advanced dramatically. Live streaming platforms are video hosting services that enable users to upload and broadcast video content to their target audience. Businesses use online video platforms to share videos for lead generation, brand awareness, advertising, and providing paid video streaming access. Some platforms are better than others when it comes to streaming, depending on your brand’s goals.
Facebook Live, for example, is one of the most popular live streaming sites that most people are familiar with.
Despite its popularity, it has many limitations for businesses seeking greater control over their live stream experience. That is why it is critical to compare live streaming platforms in order to determine which live streaming platform is best for your business.
Statistics on Live Streaming
Many businesses are utilising live streaming platforms to reach their target audience in an engaging and entertaining manner. Let’s take a look at some live streaming statistics that truly demonstrate the industry’s growing value.According to experts, the live streaming industry will be worth $187.4 billion by 2027. In the third quarter of 2021, the weekly reach of live streams worldwide was 30.4 percent. In 2022, multistreaming will be big, with many multistream platforms already available to stream to multiple sources.
Live streams hold viewers’ attention for approximately 27% longer than on-demand videos. Marketing with video can help businesses increase revenue by 49%. Landing pages with video content typically generate at least 80% more conversions. Live streaming content holds viewers’ attention for 10-20x longer than VOD content. Online video is now used for marketing by 86 percent of businesses. In 2020, the Zoom streaming app was downloaded 485 million times, and by 2021, there were over 467,100 business users on Zoom.
Almost three-quarters of marketers believe that video content outperforms static content. Want to learn more about the current state of the live streaming industry and how it can benefit your business? Learn more about how live web streaming is changing the way people consume content by reading our 115 live streaming statistics article.
Benefits
The benefit of having so many live video streaming services to choose from is that there are dozens of powerful feature combinations to choose from. Again, there is no “one-size-fits-all” solution when deciding on the best video streaming service for you. That means that features that are valuable to one broadcaster may not be valuable to another, and vice versa. The best livestreaming platform is one that is tailored to your specific business requirements.
When choosing a streaming platform, consider the following key features:
- Services for professional video hosting
- Tools for managing video content
- Solutions for secure video streaming
- A high-quality CDN (content delivery network) for professional live streaming.
- Low latency streaming ensures uninterrupted live video delivery.
- RTMP (real-time messaging protocol)
Support for ingest, playback, and streaming - Capabilities for video monetization
- APIs for live streaming for better content management
- Support for mobile streaming applications, as well as an SDK for iOS and Android integration
- Tools for video editing and embedding
- Video analytics that is cutting-edge
- Encoding and transcoding of video in the cloud for live or VOD content streaming
- Encoding software for live video transmission
Does the live streaming service provider offer a plan that meets your broadcasting requirements?
To determine which features are most valuable in a live streaming video service, you should first identify your goals for online video broadcasting. Once you’ve created a list of goals, determine which features are required to achieve those goals, and then select your live streaming platform for video streaming based on those tools.
This is the best strategy for sifting through the top livestream platforms and selecting the best one for your company’s requirements.
Compatibility of Live Streaming Technology
It is critical to consider compatibility with other live streaming technology when comparing the best live streaming platforms for you. Encoders, for example, play a significant role in the live streaming process, and if you want to use low-cost RTMP encoders, you must first determine whether your platform supports RTMP ingest.
Another thing to keep in mind is that several new streaming protocols, such as SRT and WebRTC, are on the horizon. These protocols serve different purposes, but they all support higher-quality live streaming. They are not widely supported because they are still in development. WebRTC, for example, is intended specifically for real-time video streaming and web conferencing. If this is a feature that is important to you, you should look for a live stream service that supports it or an integration that provides it. Continuing with that example, Dacast provides a Zoom live streaming integration that incorporates the web conferencing aspect that you may require. Dacast also supports WebRTC streaming, which allows you to livestream directly from your webcam.
Other aspects of live streaming technology compatibility to consider are broadcasting software compatibility, supported switchers, simulcasting tools, and mobile streaming support. In order to support your business goals, you should look for a streaming video platform that provides as many of these features as possible.
The Rise of Business Live Video Streaming
Professional broadcasting is not a new concept, but it has evolved in recent years. Live streaming services for businesses were previously uncommon. Because YouTube Live and Facebook Live were popular video streaming services, it was common for online streaming businesses to use live streaming websites designed for consumers and independent content creators, such as YouTube Live and Facebook Live.
Amateur broadcasters and independent streamers benefit greatly from consumer-grade broadcast platforms.
However, these free web streaming services simply lack the tools required for professional broadcasters or streaming businesses to succeed. When it comes to customization and control, consumer-grade broadcasting platforms fall short of professional streaming platforms. The fact that many schools and organisations block Youtube and Facebook because they are social media platforms was one of the first roadblocks that pushed businesses to seek professional corporate live streaming software.
Because many organisations block social media consumer grade broadcasting platforms, a business using social media live streaming software would miss out on large audiences. Another disadvantage of consumer-grade video streaming platforms is that you have no control over how the video player looks, content recommendations, or advertising. The frustration that these free web streaming services caused for businesses compelled the use of professional streaming solutions. Businesses can now choose from a variety of professional live streaming platforms that offer greater control. Professional video streaming platforms provide more than just the ability to avoid having your stream blocked; they also provide control over the video viewing experience, from how the video player looks to what, if any, advertisements play with your content.
Professional Live Streaming Platform Technology Professional grade cloud-based streaming platforms are designed for business needs that exceed the features of free online video platforms. Professional live streaming platforms are primarily used to host live broadcasts for businesses and other professional organisations. Some advantages of hosting video content on a professional live streaming platform include monetization, customization, access to improved security features, and fewer restrictions. Many professional online video streaming platforms include built-in video paywalls and tools for integrating into existing workflows. You have more control over your live streaming experience on both ends, broadcasters and viewers, with the help of both video and player APIs.
Many of these professional business video streaming platforms, such as Dacast, also provide 24-hour technical support. Most consumer-grade live streaming options do not provide this level of assistance, instead leaving you to figure things out on your own. Another advantage of using a professional video delivery platform for live streaming is that it typically does not impose time limits on your streams, allowing you to stream for as long as you want. Many also provide white-label video players, which allow you to have a professional live stream video embedded directly on your website with no third-party ads or branding. Professional live streaming platforms exist to provide you with a video hosting service over which you have complete control. With a professional live streaming platform, your business needs come first, not the platform’s.
Top 15 Best live streaming services – Everything You Need to Know
We’ve compiled up-to-date information on the best streaming services :
1. Dacast
2. Brightcove
Brightcove’s Video Cloud makes use of an innovative HTML5 video player as well as cutting-edge ingest and transcoding technology. Brightcove, based in Boston, is one of the oldest online video platforms in the game.Its product offerings revolve primarily around cloud encoding, live streaming, and VOD (video on demand) hosting.
3. IBM Cloud Video
4. JW Player
JW Player’s live streaming platform is a sophisticated set of tools that includes an open source video player.
JW Player began as a small piece of open-source code to play audio and video files in 2005 as part of a student project.This code then became the foundational video player for the fledgling YouTube, which used the JW Player until Google acquired the platform in 2006.
5. Livestream
Livestream was one of the world’s largest live streaming companies when it was founded in 2007 as “Mogulus.”
Vimeo purchased the Livestream platform in 2017. The two platforms’ services have been merged since the acquisition. The Vimeo platform now powers over 10 million events per year and is built around an integrated system of hardware, software, and cloud services.
6. Muvi
Muvi’s live streaming platform is a complete, managed OTT solution. muvi.com is the source. Muvi is the next best live streaming platform in this review, focusing on over-the-top OTT media. This online video platform is unique in that it provides OTT broadcasters with a turnkey solution.
7. Resi
Resi, which was founded in 2014, is an end-to-end live streaming platform that includes a variety of streaming tools. This company provides broadcasters with all of the tools they need to get started with live streaming. Resi is marketed as a “affordable” solution, but no pricing information is available on their website.
8. StreamShark
The OTT platform from StreamShark includes a live streaming workflow with simple features and global CDN delivery. StreamShark, founded in 2011 from research at the University of Melbourne, is another of the best live streaming platforms with multi-faceted online video functionality. In fact, StreamShark is a subsidiary of MetaCDN. This means that the platform specialises in delivering timely and innovative content.
9. Kaltura
Kaltura is a video streaming and hosting service for businesses. Through engaging video tools, Kaltura offers the most comprehensive range of live streaming video solutions for any business.Kaltura.com is the source.
10. StreamYard
StreamYard Hopin founded StreamYard, an in-browser live streaming platform. This platform is simple, but it will suffice for broadcasters with limited live streaming requirements. Because this platform is fairly simple, it is relatively simple to begin streaming on StreamYard.
11. StreamLabs OBS
Streamlabs OBS, also known as “SLOBS,” is another powerful live streaming software. It has similar functionality to OBS Studio, but it is easier to use because it uses a graphical user interface rather than a command-line interface. The most recent version of Streamlabs OBS is v1.6.1, which can be downloaded here.
12. Cincopa’s
Cincopa is a live streaming platform best known for hosting multimedia. Cincopa is a multimedia hosting platform used by large businesses to store their content. Cincopa provides all of the tools required by broadcasters to host high-quality live streams, in addition to media hosting.
13. Restream Studio
14. Wowza
For mission-critical applications, Wowza’s cloud streaming platform includes a live streaming engine.
Wowza is a bootstrapped start-up founded in 2005 by David Stubenvoll and Charlie Good, with live and on-demand live streaming capabilities to phones, tablets, and consoles, with a focus on greater accessibility, greater flexibility, and the best cost-effectiveness.
15. Panopto
Panopto’s live streaming platform is a dependable solution for any organization’s video management, streaming, and recording needs.Panopto, a video company focusing on businesses and universities, was founded as a tech project at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh in 2007.This platform allows you to stream, share, record, and manage video content.Panopto serves an audience of over 5 million end-users in the e-learning space with over 100 employees in 6 offices around the world.
Conclusion
We hope this article has given you a better understanding of the streaming platforms available and what you should look for when comparing them. Most importantly, we hope you’ve been able to narrow down your live streaming service provider options. Still undecided about which streaming service to use? We strongly advise you to take advantage of free trials for the best live streaming platforms.
Check Also : How To Get The Best VPN For Streaming In 2022