Intro
Live streaming technology offers so much more than just immediate communication with viewers. Audiences watch live streams on social networks and gaming sites for the real-time interaction and engagement. You can’t get that with traditional TV, and consumers don’t think TV is essential anymore. Only 60% of U.S. households had pay-TV services in 2021 — a drop from 91% in 2010. The best way to take advantage of the booming live streaming industry is to stream to multiple platforms at the same time. When it comes to multistreaming, there is no better solution than Restream. Here are seven main reasons you need to use Restream for your next multistream.
1. You can go live in minutes
Live streaming is all about breaking down barriers. You don’t need to have a production company to create and broadcast your live show. You don’t even need to have any professional-grade gear to be able to stream online — you can start live streaming with nothing but your webcam. Thanks to Restream, you don’t have to limit yourself to one platform either.
We’ve gone a step further in making multistreaming simpler and more accessible. Thanks to our cloud-based live streaming solution, Restream Studio, you can start live streaming to multiple websites in minutes with only your browser and a webcam. And that’s not even the best part. With Restream Studio you get:
- Customized live streams with your own graphics (overlays, logos and backgrounds)
- The ability to use captions — add call to actions (CTAs) or other important messages
- A chat window where you can monitor what your viewers are saying
- Streaming with multiple participants – invite multiple participants from all over the world directly to your live stream
PRO TIP: use graphics in your live streams
If you’ve prepared some visuals to add to your stream or want to make your broadcast more dynamic, Restream Studio has support for more visually appealing live streams.
You can use a background for your stream and let the viewers know you’re about to go online. Or you can display a logo when you think it’s time you step up your branding game. With an overlay, you can have a graphics layer over your stream. And if all you want is to add a call to action to your video, you can do that by using captions.
2. Support for over 30 platforms
How many streaming platforms can you count? YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn have their own “Live” services for live video streaming.
Then there is Twitch for gamers and other content creators. Not to mention that both YouTube and Facebook have a gaming category as well. There’s Vapers.tv for vapers, Picarto.tv, Behance and Mixcloud for artists, and AfreecaTV for South Korean streamers. But that’s not all.
There are many different places where you might want to multistream. It makes sense to choose a multistreaming service that supports streaming to the platforms where your audience likes to watch live video content. Restream supports more than 30 platforms so you’re sure to find one that suits your needs.
PRO TIP: a solution for the platforms It doesn’t support
If you need to stream to a platform that isn’t supported by Restream, don’t worry. Custom RTMP is the Restream feature that allows you to use Restream with any platform. You’ll need the RTMP URL and the stream key provided by the platform, then you’re set to go.
3. Monitor your streams in real time
Analyzing performance data after you’ve finished a live streaming session is crucial, but it’s also useful to have that data available during the live stream. If there’s something wrong with the quality of your stream, it’s better to fix it as soon as possible so you don’t lose viewers.
Thanks to Restream’s monitor feature, you can see your current bitrate, keyframe interval, frames per second, and dropped frames as well as the video and audio codec you are using. Keeping tabs on these metrics helps you ensure the quality of your stream and can alert you to any problems that arise.
4. Awesome multistream analytics
It wouldn’t make sense to use a multistreaming service that doesn’t provide you with analytics. Restream gives you a lot of useful data points you can use to analyze your content’s performance. You can even see aggregate data for all the platforms you stream to.
From showing time spent streaming to identifying the number of average users, chatters, or chat messages, as well as peak activity, Restream analytics is the perfect tool to get actionable insights into how your content resonates with your audience.
5. Unlimited streaming time, unlimited bitrate
If you want to stream as much or even more than your competitors, or as long as it takes to finish a game of cricket or baseball or deliver an inspired sermon, that’s a decision that should be up to you. If the platforms you choose allow unlimited streaming time, the multistreaming services you use shouldn’t cap it.
Restream doesn’t put limits on how long you can stream. It also allows unlimited bitrate. There’s no reason to have to choose between quality and quantity — with Restream, you can have both. Just make sure you’re not compromising your streaming health.
6. Streaming of pre-recorded video
Live streaming is for live content, right? Wrong — at least, not always. You can live stream content you have previously scripted, practiced, recorded and edited. You get all the benefits of being able to produce content at your own pace and then stream it live to a waiting audience.
Restream’s upload and stream feature allows you to upload videos and stream them live to your preferred platforms. Once you’ve scheduled the stream, you can then use Restream events to notify your viewers about your upcoming broadcast. Restream events also lets you create event links on social channels like Facebook and YouTube, and can also be used for pre-recorded videos or live streams.
7. Handling multiple chats in one place
Having a live chat makes live streaming great for audience engagement. Someone watching you could chat with you, and you could react to their words in real time, while they’re watching.
But if you plan to stream to multiple channels at the same time, how do you prioritize which audience you’ll chat with? It can be very difficult to keep up with a single chat if you have a decent number of viewers. Juggling two, three or four chats can be next to impossible.
Restream chat simplifies chatting while multistreaming by showing all the messages from each platform in the same window. Anyone who has ever had difficulty staying on top of multiple chats will know how useful that is.
Wrap-up
Restream has a lot to offer to anyone interested in live streaming, especially if they plan to multistream. With all the features listed here plus a dedicated 24/7 live support team available to all users, it has everything you need to broadcast your video to multiple channels.
Restream Studio is a solution that lets everyone try multistreaming, even those who are new to live video streaming. It’s easy to use, effective and hands-down the quickest way to get your live stream in front of audiences on multiple streaming platforms.
