Barely a month goes by where one of the big name competitors in the live video streaming sector doesn’t introduce a new feature, unveil a redesign, or evolve in another way. Justin.tv is currently doing all those and more in an effort to forge ahead of its rivals.
Live Video Streaming
The live video streaming sector is one of the most competitive across the whole online video market. Big names such as Justin.tv, Ustream, and Mogulus continue to evolve and improve in their efforts to become the number one brand and recognized in the same breath as Google, eBay, Amazon, and YouTube.
Mogulus recently rebranded itself to LiveStream, buying the frankly worth its weight in gold domain name to go with it. While Ustream underwent a radical redesign this time last year and then again in April of this year. Now, Justin.tv, the current traffic leader, has done the same. As well as a complete redesign of the site there are also a number of new features being added to the mix.
Justin.tv Redesign
The Justin.tv site has been given a visual overhaul, now looking cleaner and more simplified than before. The usability of the site has also been made more simpler, obviously an attempt to persuade more people than broadcasting isn’t something which requires degrees in film-making and electronics.
The main way this simple approach is achieved is by the introduction of one-touch recording. There’s no longer any need to sign up for an account or log in to an existing one. You can now start sharing live video with the world by “Live broadcasting in one click.” There is also now a Meebo IM chat bar present on each page of the site.
Camtweet and DVR Functionality
Justin.tv has also introduced a couple of very nice features in the last month. June saw DVR functionality come to the service. Now, when you’re watching something and realize you need to pause or stop watching for a while, you can click a button to give you the option to, “Continue watching this later.” The video will be recorded and you can begin watching from the point you left the video stream for up to seven days.
Just a few days ago Justin.tv also unveiled Camtweet, a new side project aimed at users of the micro-blogging social networking site Twitter. In essence, the yet-to-launch Twitter app allows you to broadcast live video on Twitter. Camtweet is a devilishly simple idea that brings Justin.tv functionality to the much-hyped Twitter just as it goes mainstream.
Conclusions
These changes are making Justin.tv a whole lot more user-friendly than it was previously. Which has got to be a good thing in such a crowded and competitive market. By appealing to the masses, and taking the pain out of live streaming, Justin.tv could be about to increase the lead it holds over its rivals. Until, of course, they up the ante once again. Either way, it’s broadcasters who benefit.
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