What Is Live Streaming?

The Quarter Final of the FIFA World Cup 2022 between Brazil and Croatia was a shocker for the former where it was defeated by the latter in a breath-stopper penalty shootout. It was the first-ever victory for Croatia against the five-time champions in any soccer match, making it an unforgettable event. When it was live streamed on YouTube on December 9, 2022, by a popular Brazilian streamer, Casimiro, on his YouTube channel - CazéTV, it stunned everyone by becoming YouTube’s one of most viewed live streams ever 6.1 million viewers at its peak time (the highest being Felix Baumgartner's jump which was streamed on Red Bull's official channel). This record, which was possible only because of crazy soccer fans worldwide, couldn’t uphold the title for a long time when ISRO stunned it on August 23, 2023.

Live Streaming Of ISRO’s Chandrayaan-3 Mission Breaks YouTube Record:

The third lunar mission, Chandrayaan-3, launched by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), shattered every single record when the Vikram lander smoothly touched the south pole of the moon before releasing the Pragyaan rover from its belly to conduct experiments on the lunar surface. This spectacular event was watched live by a whopping 8.06 million concurrent viewers on YouTube who were eagerly waiting to witness the final descent of the lander. This historical event of the Chandrayaan-3’s moon landing is now officially the most-viewed YouTube live stream in the world.

It is now obvious that watching an event, as it unfolds in real time, has a separate fan base. From soccer matches and space missions (like SpaceX’s Crew Dragon Demo-2) to product launching (like the Apple Event of September 2022) and celebrity trials (like Johnny Depp vs. Amber Heard), viewers feel like insiders and consider themselves an essential part of an online community that shares common interests.

So, What Exactly Is Live Streaming?

Sitting at the heart of everything mentioned above is the spectacular phenomenon of live streaming which refers to the broadcasting of video and audio content over the Internet in real time. Instead of downloading or listening to previously recorded content, live streaming enables users to connect and engage with content creators, fellow viewers, and a wide array of worldwide audiences. There is nothing artificial in it as users become an active part of the real action by offering their thoughts and information, asking questions, and sharing reactions while having a front-row seat to an online event.

A Glimpse Into The Working Of Live Streaming:

A user can start live streaming either by running a traditional downloaded software or staying away from technical complexities by using a browser-based live streaming software. The downloadable software usually requires an intense machine with the user having a reasonable level of technical proficiency whereas when it comes to live streaming directly from a web browser, the requirement of a baseline technical competence diminishes. Any content creator, be it a newcomer or an expert, can stream from a browser creating professional-looking content in a hassle-free manner. Let’s have a brief rundown on the working of live streaming software and get the gist of live stream content that originates at the creator’s end and travels all the way to reach a viewer's device:

1. Capturing Audio-Video: Initially, the creator’s audio-video signals are recorded by the device he/she uses for the purpose of creating live streaming content. Any external camera or mic attached to the device can also be used other than the same built-in features.
2. Encoding: The large files are compressed and segmented into different small files and formats that support the receiver’s device.
3. Protocol: The tiny data packets are transferred to a server with the help of a protocol. A protocol is like a teacher who, after the morning assembly finishes, manages the queues of kids and ensures they reach their classroom without any difficulty.
4. Server: The server is the super guru whose job, out of many, primarily is to arrange data in the correct order and send it to the viewer while ensuring its security and adjusting the bitrates to make sure it plays smoothly on the receiver’s device, based on the available Internet speed.
5. Content Delivery Network (CDN): The server sends a copy of the original data to the CDN, a group of servers located in the geographical proximity of the receiver.
6. CDN To Viewer: Located somewhere near the receiver, the CDN sends the data to the end user in real time. The reduced physical distance ensures a smooth playback at the receiver’s device.

If you’re interested in a detailed explanation of the functioning of live streaming software, please read the following post:

How Does Yostream Work?

There are certain terminologies you must be aware of when starting your live streaming journey. Some of the important ones are bitrate, resolution, and latency. Bitrates means how much data is being transmitted per second and it clearly implies that in order to get a better audio-visual quality, one must need higher bitrates which is not possible with slow Internet connections. Resolution (720p, 1080p, 4K, etc.) is all about video quality which means more bandwidth and processing power are required to get a high-quality video. Latency refers to the time taken by data to travel from source to destination. For a perfect real-time interaction, low latency is always the need of the hour.