Why professional live video operators are ditching OBS, laptops, and single-function encoders for Videon and Bitmovin’s end-to-end solution

The way we experience the world has dramatically changed–and live video technology is fundamental to this transformation. 

Over the past several years, live streaming has quickly become a part of our everyday life–from interactive live sports and multi-camera in-venue experiences to network live event broadcasts to virtual live betting. The immediacy of real-time video gave us a sense of connection during a global pandemic, bringing people together like never before–and with staying power. 

Today, the market for professional live video streaming shows no sign of slowing down. In fact, in 2020, the live streaming marketing was worth $6 billion in the United States (Coresight Research), and by 2023, the market is expected to be worth more than $25 billion (¹CNBC)–more than quadrupling in just 3 years. 

As the live streaming market has exploded, so has the need for reliable, low-latency live streaming solutions that enable operators, influencers and live event producer to create live streams, regardless of their budget and skillset. While there are a wide range of solutions available, for many live video operators, open source tools like OBS running on a laptop or a single-function encoder are just not cutting it anymore. They can be unreliable, inflexible, and complex–hurdles that can hold you back from delivering high quality live streaming experiences. Also, there is no real redundancy for laptop-based solutions, which can be a deal-breaker for many workflows. Plus, the costs can quickly add up, when you take into account the additional IT and maintenance “tax” for these solutions.

Instead, video operators need an end-to-end commercial-grade solution that just works.

Simple, Reliable, High-Quality - A live streaming solution that can do more

We believe that all live streams deserve to be reliable, simple, high-quality, flexible, mobile, and cost-effective. That’s why we partnered with our friends at Bitmovin to create an end-to-end solution that supports single input, dual input resilience, and 1+1 redundancy for video operators of almost any skill set. 

With the Videon Compute Platform and the Bitmovin Live Encoder, customers can create workflows that seamlessly integrate live video production with the network function to start streaming live video fast–all with an easy-to-use, end-to-end solution.

No matter the operator's experience level, they can deploy reliable live streaming to almost any physical environment and deliver content to the public cloud for distribution. The Videon Compute Platform leverages its EdgeCaster device at the video source, improving reliability with fewer points of failure and reducing operational costs. This collaborative solution is ideal for ad-hoc live events at roaming locations or permanent installations. 

Here’s how it works

The Videon Compute Platform is the baseline for a hybrid:cloud architecture, utilizing edge computing at the point-of-production, enabling cloud workflows to become intelligent, flexible, and efficient. This is made possible by the combination of hardcore edge processing and a growing marketplace of apps that any vertical, including live sports, can take advantage of.  From there, the live event content is transported to the Bitmovin Live Encoder, which then distributes outputs that are optimized for delivery over the internet. This ensures the highest quality video and audio that will raise your live streaming experiences to the next level. 

The process is simple. Just take a look at just how easy it can be: 

1. Simply plug the signal from your camera, capture device, or production system to Videon Compute Platform’s EdgeCaster device and then deliver  to the cloud-based Bitmovin Live Encoder.

2. Video operators can deliver content over the internet using the easy-to-setup RTMP protocol or Secure Reliable Transport (SRT).

3. Bitmovin’s Live Encoder is a SaaS-managed service that is cloud agnostic and can operate in Bitmovin’s Cloud or a customer-owned public cloud account and delivers content in HLS or DASH in SD, HD, or 4K to digital platforms.

4. Customers can take advantage of Bitmovin’s rich array of API commands and operator dashboards that allows them to manage content from multiple devices and locations in a web browser.

5. Deliver content in the highest possible quality that Bitmovin and Videon are famed for!

Advantages of Videon and Bitmovin’s end-to-end solution 

1. Easily deliver the highest quality live content 

No matter the level of experience the operator has, they can easily deploy high-quality, resilient live streams. With a rich array of API commands and operators dashboard, customers can manage content from multiple devices and locations in a web browser, while delivering content in the highest possible quality. 

2. Gain confidence with unmatched reliability–even for high profile events 

The combined Videon and Bitmovin solution can be deployed to almost any physical environment and deliver content to the public cloud for distribution. In addition, the solution features 1+1 redundancy on-premises, with dual video compute platforms distributing a main and backup signal to a dual input Bitmovin Live Encoder (with auto failover from main to back-up)–ensuring a hardened solution for high profile live events. 

This resilience can be extended further, with primary and backup EdgeCasters feeding separate Live Encoders running in the same regions but with two different cloud providers, taking advantage of Bitmovin offering a cloud agnostic approach. 

Go live–fast 

By collaborating on this solution, Videon and Bitmovin continue to innovate in the ever-changing world of the live streaming video industry by staying ahead of the curve with the latest technologies and applications. Contact us today to learn more.