After years of rumors and promises which were never quite fulfilled, YouTube is finally rolling out a live streaming platform. However, it’s currently just a two-day test, and even if it does get the go-ahead it’ll likely still only be limited to YouTube partners. At least for the foreseeable future.
Live Streaming
Live streaming video is an increasingly popular part of the online video sector. Sites such as Livestream, Ustream, and Justin.tv have given everyone the opportunity to effectively run their own television channel.
However, many people use the sites to (re)broadcast content on cable channels, such as pay-per-view MMA fights. In other words, piracy is rampant on live streaming sites, and that is one of the reasons why they are so popular at this point in time.
Which is probably why YouTube has resisted its natural urge to offer its own live streaming platform. Until now.
YouTube Live
YouTube has been talking about offering live streaming on a grand scale for years now, but nothing has ever come of it. Instead, the Google-owned site has concentrated on one-off events such as a U2 Concert and cricket matches from the Indian Premier League.
However, over the course of today and tomorrow (Sept. 13 & 14), YouTube is testing a new live streaming platform it hopes to be able to roll out on a bigger scale in the near future.
Four well-known partners have been chosen for the test – Howcast, Next New Networks, Rocketboom, and Young Hollywood – and YouTube is welcoming all feedback as to whether the test succeeded or failed.
The results of the testing period will determine whether YouTube live streaming becomes a permanent fixture or not. If it does then it would appear only YouTube partners will be welcomed to the party, at least initially.
This would make sense as YouTube could not only control and track the content being broadcast, it can be much more confident that no copyrighted content will show up on the site. If the millions of ordinary YouTube users were given the freedom to use the live streaming platform then chaos could ensue.
Conclusions
Should the likes of Livestream, Ustream, and Justin.tv be worried by this latest development? Probably not at this early stage, and they’ll be relieved to hear the feature is going to be limited.
However, were YouTube to truly open its live streaming feature up to the world then these sites could face a mammoth task in remaining viable.
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