Who would have thought that YouTube would appear hesitant in mobile live streaming? Two years have passed after the competitors have made their move. Now Periscope and Meerkat both offer live streaming and YouTube is only beginning to keep up.
Only recently YouTube announced in a blog post what everyone had been expecting. And even now, baby steps cannot keep up with the rest of the market.Mobile Live Streaming and Super Chat are both new features. They will change YouTube for the better, and they will live up to what most fans have been anticipating. Even though there has been a massive hype in live streaming, YouTube did not hurry up. It only now confirmed the launch of live streaming videos.
Where is the catch? This feature is not available to all YouTube subscribers. Only a small percentage can access the live streaming option. To be more specific, only those with over 10,000 subscribers can go live on YouTube. YouTube boasts an extensive user base of over 2.527 billion individuals worldwide as of April 2023. India boasts the most significant number of active YouTube users, reaching an impressive count of 467 million individuals. Mobile devices contribute to 88.9% of the total visitor base.
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It only now confirmed the launch of live streaming videos. Where is the catch? This feature is not available to all YouTube subscribers. Only a small percentage can access the live streaming option. To be more specific, only those with over 10,000 subscribers can go live on YouTube.
Before concluding that YouTube delays with no reason, it is worth noting a few things. First of all, YouTube is in fact concerned with the quality standards of videos. The revenues of the company depend on the videos. So it goes without even saying that the quality is of top priority.
Imagine what would happen if everyone went live. Chaos would prevail! More than that, millions of comments would flood the platform. There would be no limit or even the slightest control. Hate speech, bullying and all hell would break loose.
If the feature became accessible to all, there would be no limit on the data usage and bandwidth. The result would be devastating. Frequent problems would occur and trouble users and advertisers alike.
So it is important to guarantee quality and efficiency, before launching this feature. Now it is in the hands of the most seasoned players. It seems that prudent use will prevent any mistreatment.
Another issue of concern is, of course, that of copyright infringement. Imagine the premiere of a popular TV series like Game of Thrones. This would take place on HBO and the audience would have to watch it via the specific service.
What about those who decide to go live? Sharing such content might seem innocent at first, but in reality, it is not. Legal problems can emerge and YouTube must take them into consideration. Piracy is on the rise and there is no room for mediocre measures.
For all these reasons, YouTube is taking it slow. Nobody knows for sure when the feature of live streaming will be accessible to all. Chances are that in 2017 this feature will expand to more YouTube users.
Until then, the company will experiment. They will check out the feedback from the most experienced database of users. This sounds like the right thing to do!
Top/Featured Image: By Hamzairfan / Wikipedia
