Live streaming seems to be all the rage right now, with Periscope and Facebook Live both becoming popular ways to stream video of yourself to your friends and followers. Now YouTube is getting in on the action, too.
YouTube has announced that it’s building live streaming functionality into its mobile apps. The videos will work just like regular YouTube videos in that you’ll be able to search for them and find them in recommendations and playlists. YouTube’s live streaming offering will also offer live chatting that looks similar to Periscope.
In order to begin a live stream, you’ll just hit the red capture button, then take a photo or select one that you’ve already got to be used as your thumbnail. You’ll then be good to go.
YouTube says that it’s rolling live streaming functionality out to select users at first, including The Young Turks, AIB, Platica Polynesia, SacconeJolys, and Alex Wassabi. The feature will roll out more widely soon.
The launch of a live streaming feature in the YouTube app is a big deal. YouTube is perhaps the biggest name in online video, and the fact that YouTube is building live streaming into its core app rather than creating a whole new one is a move that could give that feature a huge boost (once it rolls out widely, that is). Periscope and Facebook Live may have been in the live streaming game for months now, but YouTube could still become a big player in that market.
YouTube today also said that some new shows and movies are coming to YouTube Red. That includes a “Step Up” series based on the dance movie of the same name, a comedy show called “Rhett & Link’s Buddy System,” and a documentary show called “Vlogumentary” that looks into the lives of some of YouTube’s well-known creators.
