Live stream services overview
The market offers numerous live streaming options, and it’s not an easy task to choose the best one. Everything depends on your aims.
If you provide a private blog with sporadic streams, just for fun and to keep in touch with your friends and followers, you’ll need a free platform. If you want to earn, you’ll look for monetization options, and here you may have to pay some fees.
Other important features include bandwidth limits, advertisement, number of users (your potential followers), customization options, etc.
Let’s have a look at 7 live video streaming sites:
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YouTube
YouTube is definitely one of the top live streaming solutions companies and one of the most influential ones. YouTube is a popular platform for vlogs, but it is also used to livestream events or even routine daily life.
YouTube offers lots of monetization options and plans. Another feature: every stream is automatically recorded and can be watched later as a usual video. On the other side, the competition is quite high, as every day hundreds of new vloggers join.
Advantages
- Wide international audience.
- Possibility to send reactions and comments while watching someone’s online stream.
- Free mode.
Disadvantages
- Comparatively low quality of a live video.
- Lack of some features present on other platforms, such as multi-cam streaming, branding while streaming, etc.
Facebook
Being mostly known as a social medium, Facebook has also launched a live streaming feature, which became incredibly popular. Vloggers and business owners claim that this option has increased their brand awareness greatly and helps attract new customers.
Advantages
- It’s free of charge.
- One of the widest international auditories.
- Interactivity while broadcasting.
Disadvantages
- Max resolution 1080p.
- Facebook live streams are not indexed in search engines.
- 90 minutes video length limit.
- Lack of monetization options.
Uscreen
Uscreen is an ultimate solution for video creators and streamers who want to promote their businesses. Unfortunately itdoesn’t have a free subscription plan, but this drawback may be partially compensated by a variety of other features.
Advantages
- Many monetization options.
- Automatic streaming recording.
- A downloadable list of all the stream attendees, for future analytics or follow-up emails.
Disadvantages
- Quite pricey subscription.
- Poor support service.
LinkedIn
LinkedIn live streaming is a tool for promoting some events, not for earning money, as this platform is primarily a social medium for recruiters and job-seekers. That results in a lack of monetizing features and some other drawbacks, but anyway, this option may come in handy.
Advantages
- Prior live stream scheduling.
- Automatically generated captions.
- Live video editing options.
Disadvantages
- No monetization options.
- Before going live you must request an approval.
Panopto
Unlike other services in this list, Panopto is not intended for public broadcasting. Here you can start streams for defined groups and invitees, something like conferences, job meetings, teaching sessions, and so on.
Advantages
- Free subscription plan (with limited functionality, though).
- Unlimited number of participants for each stream.
- Multi-cam streaming.
- Real-time analytics.
Disadvantages
- Interface is not very user-friendly.
- Automatic captioning is not always accurate.
Twitch
Twitch needs no introduction to anyone from the gamers’ world. This platform is mostly used for streaming games, but not exclusively: there are also vlogs on lifestyle, cooking, different hints, and other topics.
Advantages
- Several monetization options.
- Possibility to record and rewatch streams.
- Wide audience.
Disadvantages
- Trolls in comments.
- Ambiguous rules.
TikTok
TikTok is considered to be a social medium for teenagers and young adults, but it’s much more than that. Nowadays it’s one of the main sources of learning and entertainment, in some spheres even more popular than Instagram.
Advantages
- Live streams may be longer than in-feed videos.
- Intuitive interface.
Disadvantages
- Live streams are not recorded.
- Only members with 1000+ followers can go live.
Conclusion
If there is demand — there is supply, the market is full of live-streaming platforms, general and niche ones. Just select the one you need and start streaming! And if your platform allows recording streams, don’t forget to edit your video a little to make it smoother and attract more followers.