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The live streaming industry is expected to hit $70.05 billion by 2021. With so much competition out there, live video is one of the most effective ways to narrate your brand story. Unlike ever before the audience has new ways of interacting with their favorite businesses.

So what is stopping you from leveraging the immense potential of live streaming? If you are thinking about how to start a live streaming business, and you are like most beginners, you might be stuck in selecting the best live streaming solution for your needs.  Your live streaming platform choice will greatly depend on your business goals and target audience. Even business insiders say the choice of your live streaming platform makes live streaming simple or difficult.

To start with, you can use Periscope, Facebook, YouTube or any other platform. However, if you leverage the best live streaming tools, you can have full control over live streaming and how it impacts your business. Let’s look into the expert predictions on live streaming and best practices to choose a live streaming solution.

Expert predictions on live streaming in 2020

What can we expect from live streaming technology in 2020? There has been a lot of speculation over the transformation of live streaming for the upcoming years. On the enterprise side, brands are focusing more on security and cloud computing. Whereas on the customer side, there is the arrival of 5g, new smartphones, and increasing demand for live videos. Here are some of the expert predictions for live streaming technologies in 2020.

Doors open for enterprise streaming

One of the top trends in live streaming technology in 2020 will be mass experimentation with live streaming. More brands will get down their hands in live streaming. This will be driven by Microsoft’s decision to include live streaming capabilities in Microsoft 365. In simple words, Microsoft has narrowed the barrier for its users to leverage live streaming for employees to focus on real-time communication. This is going to be a big thing for many businesses.

Live broadcasters will have a bigger reach

2020 is going to be a great year for live broadcasters and viewers alike. With 5g services being rolled out and networks, it will become smoother for live broadcasters to deliver better quality live content to the audience across the globe.

Blockchain and artificial intelligence will have some serious effects

Blockchain allows direct participates in the network for users, live streaming service providers, and content creators. Rather than depending on a centrally controlled service offered by dominant players, anyone can become broadcasters, store data, offer transcoder, or run a streaming service.

Best practices to choose a live streaming solution

As we head into 2020, the trend of live streaming is on the rise. It is this fact that lead many businesses to invest in choosing and implementing live streaming solutions. Let’s look into some of the best practices that will help you to choose a live streaming solution.

Analyze and study the market

The very first thing in making any major choice is analyzing and comparing information. Whether you are a newbie in live streaming or looking to expand your experience, doing some research will help you understand where to start and to move in which direction. Learn about the essential equipment you need to start live streaming, the best live streaming platform, ideal live streaming solutions, how to set up live streaming video, and top live streaming providers, etc.

List down essential capabilities

The second step in choosing live streaming solutions to list down the essential features of the live streaming solution you would choose, discuss what a perfect live session would look like. Would you be using animation titles or a green screen? Write down the very important features and research about them. Here are some factors that you will want to consider at this stage:

  • Security features
  • Encoding software
  • Live streaming software
  • CDN
  • Customized branding
  • Monetization options
  • Video API access for integrations

Pay attention to the workflow

Your workflow differs based on how you produce your live videos. For instance, if you are shooting with just one camera or multiple cams, or feeding unedited video straight to the encoder, all these factors will have a direct effect on your live streams. Considering your workflow will influence the features you require. At this stage, you will have a better sense of what live streaming platforms look and feel like, so it would be easy to picture yourself using the live streaming platform in the context of your workflow.

In conclusion

If there is one thing that industry experts agree on live streaming, it’s that 2020, is going to be a great year. Barriers are narrowing down, which indicates that more players will enter the lie streaming scene, bringing with them exciting and creative ideas.

Amanda Smith is a marketing professional with expertise in strategies to engage customers and improve business opportunities. She is interested in marketing communications and likes to keep abreast of new trends and developments. @AmndaSmit

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