Many of us hop on a livestream nowadays without really thinking about it. Find out more about how this style of engagement is changing our online habits.
Live Streaming is one of those developments that seemed to arrive without much fanfare, and yet it has had a massive change in how we approach online content. Let’s take a closer look at some of the ways live streaming is beginning to shape and change our online habits.
Types of Content
One of the first major changes that we have seen is the type of content that is being pushed out through live streaming. While some of it can be rehearsed, there is an awful lot that is more freeform and subject to change. Some streamers decide to go live with very little plan. They simply want the opportunity to interact with their followers in ways that they otherwise might not be able to.
Influencers and professional streamers might have some sort of plan in place. For example, you will frequently see streamers like gamers start their sessions with some sort of plan. There might be a specific game that they want to try out, or there will be a challenge that they have in mind. If they are livestreaming with an audience chat, they might be tempted to change things up at the audience’s suggestions.
Influencing in the Moment
There are some types of content that are capable of being very influential when livestreamed in the precise moment that they are happening. Whether it is a change to horse racing odds during a big final race or a pivotal moment from a political rally, there is no end to the influence that can be found when using live streaming.
It enables someone to see something at the moment it happens, even if they are on the other side of the world. Compared to what can be garnered from a news report or something after the fact, this makes livestreaming one of the most powerful tools that we have access to. Whether we are streaming serious content or just something for fun, it has the potential to influence in a way that we don’t always see with content that has been more finely edited.
Accessible to All
Another big advantage of live streaming is that it is accessible to all both as streamers and as viewers. Nearly everyone nowadays has a smartphone, and this means that they are able to access a wide variety of content that would have previously just been available to those with computers.
What’s more, producing videos of any sort used to be incredibly difficult. However, all you need to livestream is your phone camera and a platform to upload the stream to. While some prefer to have a more in-depth set-up, this is the very basics. It means that anyone can become a live streamer and begin to create content that they could push out to the world. We are interacting with online content more actively than ever before. With that will always come the pioneers who push it to the next level. As more and more people interact with live streams either as the streamers or in the capacity of viewers, we are likely to see some form of evolution of this type of content.
Live Streaming is currently available on nearly every major social media network, and some like Twitch are even wholly built around the concept. This is a dynamic and exciting way to deliver content to people everywhere, and it is likely to have a massive impact upon how we interact with online content. If you have never tried a livestream, you should have a look into the medium soon. From celebrities interacting with their fans to ordinary people just having a chat, you never know what you might find here.