Live streaming has grown over recent years through many platforms making it very popular around the world.
Some of the applications providing this service include:
Instagram is an internet-base photo sharing application that allows users to post pictures and videos. Although, they have updated the app so that users have more options to play with. Having face filters, utilizing hashtags, adding daily stories, live streaming and many more options. Live streaming option was first release on December 2016.
Facebook is a social media website with the purpose of building relationships among people. It gives users the option of sharing their thoughts, opinions, current status, share videos or photos and also links to other sites that may be found interesting. Facebook initiative with live streaming was only available to verified account holders which were the celebrities, until mid-2016 were this option was available to anybody. Ninety percent of Facebook live audience think that video quality is the most important aspect of the application.
YouTube is a video sharing service website that allow users to upload own content videos to gain followers, likes and also with option to make profit. The feature of live streaming has been available since 2011, but recently it has been updated to mobile so that content creators with 10,000 subscribers or more can utilize it. YouTube reports a mobile consumption of 100 percent rises every year.
Many people live stream around the globe to transmit concurrent events for an audience to see. Take Sunday Oct. 1, the unfortunate event in Las Vegas, Nevada, where Stephen Paddock, 64, opened fire to thousands of people who at the time were attending the last day of a three-day country music festival, Route 91 Harvest. According to the Associated Press 59 people were killed and more than 500 others were injured when the shooting took place.
As the concert goers were already livestreaming and recording there was live footage the moment the shooting began. The videos went viral throughout social media. Americans witnessed the deadliest mass shooting in modern US history.
It is very important to utilize live streaming as a tool to help others and inform.
“The only thing that I generally live stream is the news and important information to be updated on any current events happening in the world,” said Michael Layman, 22, a Computer Science major.
Individuals who constantly use this method of communication are people who have a rating of popularity and tend to have many followers who tune to watch live videos of them.
Some videos are informative while others are simply “just because” or are done to gain more popularity.
“Things that people mainstream live are useful because humans con use the technology we have to use it from anywhere in the world at any moment to connect with people. I like to watch live streaming of people who talk to an audience, its really nice to know there’s people who support each other,” said former Delta student Paulie Kedzierski, 17.
It is important to have a variety of broad categories such as historical events, breaking news, and learning outcomes for the audience to feel a sense of belonging to a certain topic.
“Actual documentation of historical events is always really important because it is very useful information that we should all know when it comes to live streaming,” said Ulises Nunez, 16.
Although, many people may feel apart from others opinions on whether live streaming is a useful method or just a tool to gain popularity on irrelevant things. People in general have many different ideas on why would they use certain applications to live stream and the way on how active they are with this certain topic.
“I sometimes feel there’s a large chunk of the society that make people feel that they have to live stream to be important, to be relevant, because that really isn’t the case and the individual doesn’t mature if they are always thinking that way,” said Michael Layman, 22, a computer science major.
According Livestream and New York Magazine Survey, 81 percent of internet and mobile audiences watched more live video in 2016 than in 2015. The statistics say that 100 million internet users watch online videos every day.
“If they are providing a service then it is relevant if they were to be using mainstream as a way to communicate a certain issue or anything that is educational. The only thing thing that I generally watch live is the news and important information to be updated on any current events happening in the world,” said Layman.
According to NBC NEWS, “Total audience delivery averages 27.5 million viewers for Rio Olympics Competition ranking as second highest primetime audience for any non-U.S. summer games.”
On the other hand, the Super Bowl from 2016 had more than 100 million live stream viewers making this event the biggest event so far in the US history.
