Video Production > Featured Articles

Today's streaming productions scale from impromptu online broadcasts captured via webcam and delivered within a corporate firewall to massive professional multicam productions streamed worldwide. With tutorials,  reviews, and analysis from leading producers, the content on this page looks at preproduction, audio and video capture, encoding, and especially the gear and strategies essential for successful streaming.

Buyers' Guide: Live Streaming Software

This article takes a look at 12 options you can pick from when looking to produce live-switched video: Boinx mimoLive, Broadcast Pix ChurchPix, Ecamm Live, ManyCam, OBS Studio, PRISM Live Studio, Vizrt TriCaster, Telestream Wirecast, vMix, Vimeo Livestream Studio, and XSplit Broadcaster

The End of NDI As We Know It?

NDI runs the risk of losing their lead in the homestretch—squandering the nearly decade lead they have in IP video by not enforcing that licensees integrate all of the standard. I write this in the hope that they re-establish what the NDI standard means: that to license NDI, and display the NDI badge, a product must be 100% compatible.

Instant Replay: Streaming Media Connect November 2023

Streaming Media presented its 12th Connect virtual conference November 13 - 16, with media industry cartographer Evan Shapiro as host and MC. Shapiro kicked off the event with a dynamic keynote, digging deep into the Q3 earnings call data to hold the spin doctors accountable and giving an unvarnished view of the industry. Other highlights included The Future of Streaming with Shobana Radhakrishnan, Senior Director of Engineering at Google TV, and several panels covering topics such as Cloud Workflows for Streaming and CTV, Optimizing Live Streams at Scale, How Codec Patent Pools Will Impact Streaming in 2024, Making Live Streaming and VOD More Accessible, Live Streaming Technology Trends, and more.

Review: Ant Media Server (Enterprise Edition)

This review will highlight Ant Media Server and many of the features supported with the streaming server. Viewers will also learn how to configure the WebRTC streaming server on Amazon Web Services and how to get up and running with delivering live streams and video-on-demand streams.

Review: Magewell USB Fusion

The USB Fusion is a device that can be used in a production environment for local content feeds/sources. It can be used to input various sources such as HDMI devices, webcams, USB microphones, videos, images, screenshares, and other items. The USB Fusion is touted as a tool to make your online lectures and virtual events more engaging and to easily combine numerous sources into attractive live presentations for remote education, webinars, live streaming, and video conferencing.

Review: Blackmagic Design ATEM Television Studio HD8 ISO, Studio Camera 6K Pro, and ATEM Microphone Converter

The Blackmagic Design Television Studio ATEM HD8 and HD8 ISO are all-in-one HD video switcher/broadcast control panels. On their own they are very capable HD video switchers suitable for studio installations and remote productions. The magic with these switchers is that when paired with other supported Blackmagic gear, they can unlock unique production workflow solutions that are easy to implement and go well beyond what you would expect a desktop video switcher to be able to do on its own.

Streaming Media’s Trendsetting Products and Services of 2023

A detailed guide to Streaming Media's Trendsetting Products and Services of 2023.

Buyers' Guide: PTZ Cameras

Today's professional PTZ cameras are nothing like their security camera predecessors. Now you can find models with all the professional features, technology, and hardware that you find on professional camcorders and digital cine cameras. In this PTZ buyers guide, I'll explain many of these features so you can make informed decisions when evaluating PTZ cameras in your own video production workflows.

Buyers’ Guide: Cellular Bonding Solutions

Thanks to bonding and some of the other technologies discussed in this guide, the days of sending glitchy, buffering video to viewers should be behind us. Read on to learn about the many options available, at a wide variety of price points, to ensure that streaming professionals can deliver the best video possible.

Buyers’ Guide: Podcast Mixers for Live Streaming Production

Today's video producers are now able to leverage new technologies that can really help with the live streaming production—especially on-location. By utilising what are commonly called "podcast mixers," streaming producers can deliver a bit more polish, while also gaining better flexibility in production.

Review: Netgear M4250 Network Switch

As streaming producers, we are already expected to provide expertise in video cameras, switchers, live streaming, audio, and wrapping cables using the over-under method. How are we now going to master the advanced network management requirements of NDI? Start with the Netgear M4250 AV line of switches.

Review: Videon EdgeCaster EZ (w/ LiveEdge Core 8.5)

This review will highlight Videon's EdgeCaster video encoding appliance and explore its unique LiveEdge Compute technology for encoding and delivery, as well as how it works with popular video streaming platforms. I'll also discuss why many video production and remote production teams will likely move to a tool such as this in the future for streaming delivery.

Review: Blackmagic Design ATEM SDI Extreme ISO and ATEM Mini Extreme ISO

Blackmagic has set a new standard for an affordable and professional all-in-one HD video switcher, and the biggest consideration is which model fits your workflows.

Review: YoloLiv YoloBox Mini

The YoloBox Mini is a compact, single-source streaming encoder and recorder with the ability to do some audio mixing, overlay a sports scoreboard, social media content, logos, and lower-thirds. It's not a multi-camera live-switching tool like the original YoloBox or the YoloBox Pro. I consider it more of a YoloStream than a YoloBox, but this 5" screen device is so compact and light, it certainly is "Mini."

Pros and Cons of On-Prem, Cloud, and Hybrid Workflows

Where you host your workflows can make all of the difference. Experts from Signiant, Warner Bros., TV 2, and CNN break down the pros and cons of on-prem, cloud, and hybrid.

Integrating NDI Sources From Conferencing Platforms

Live-event video production during COVID has rapidly accelerated the use of NDI output from popular conferencing tools such as Zoom and Microsoft Teams, particularly for one-to-many broadcasts in which remote contributors are the norm. This article will explain how to enable NDI in Zoom and Microsoft Teams for higher-quality input sources into your live-streaming workflow.

Announcing the 2022 Streaming Media European Innovation Awards

We've renamed our annual readers' choice awards, but it's still the only awards programme in the industry that gives a voice to the people who matter most—the ones who actually use these products and services every day. We're now accepting nominations in 16 categories, until 24 June.

Video Editing in the Cloud

There are many cloud-based editing solutions available, nearly too many to count. Who should consider using them and why? How can you tell them apart? That's what we'll cover in this article.

Review: The Roland V-160HD Hybrid Event Video Switcher

While detailing every feature of this switcher is beyond the scope of the article, we'll present the top 10 features we fully appreciate on the Roland V-160HD, peppered with some constructive criticism for good measure.

Blockchain and NFTs: Power to the Creators

Some say NFTs (non-fungible tokens) are a novelty, a status symbol for the crypto rich, and a bubble that's bound to burst. Others argue that NFTs will fundamentally change business models in the creative industries. It's early days, but there's plenty of momentum behind NFTs and blockchain. Here's what you need to know.