The rest of the world may be turning their attention to on-demand TV or catch-up TV but YouTube believes there is still demand for live streaming TV on the Internet. Having successfully broadcast a couple of live events using streaming technology from other media providers, YouTube is now testing its own technology over a two day period that will help them determine whether or not they have the capability to make it a more permanent offering.
Still only in alpha testing, the technology is being trialled twoday and tomorrow and is unlikely to be available to the general public yet. This round of testing is more likely to determine whether the technology is in place with later tests being used to calculate whether YouTube and the new framework will be able to cope with reasonable demand for events like music concerts, sporting events, and even political announcements.
YouTube has previously had some success in the live streaming department having aired President Obama’s first address of the nation, Indian cricket matches, and a U2 concert. These one off streaming performances went well and proved popular, which is why they have taken the step of trialling the technology for a more permanent streaming solution.
Four broadcasters have been signed up for the testing gig and they will be providing a range of different programs, but these may not be visible to the general public.
One of the biggest potential problems that YouTube will face in trying to stream major events live is coping with the bandwidth that this will place on servers. Something like a major football match or boxing match that could potentially attract tens of millions of viewers all at once could cause the stream to fail.
Would you watch live TV on YouTube?
Source:- BBC News