Live Video: The Next Evolution of Online Communication

Since the birth of the world wide web in the last century, people have been using it to communicate ideas, information, entertainment, and promotional material. In the internet’s early days, websites were made up almost exclusively of text. As bandwidth and popularity of the internet increased, so too did its capabilities. Sound and images soon augmented the online experience, allowing the sharing of music and photographs online. Later, audio and visual came together to generate online video, allowing online services like YouTube and Netflix to prosper. As they say, if a picture is worth 1,000 words, then a minute of online video is worth 1.8 million. Humans process visuals 60,000 times faster than text. Let’s dive in to see how important the use of video, more specifically live video, is becoming of greater importance in business below.

The Growth of Live Video

Now, the next big transition in online content sharing is live video streaming. From 2016 to 2021, live video traffic has grown 4 times over. In 2019, 57% of marketers were using live video as the next big thing for introducing and promoting products. Gamers have appreciated the sense of community and recognition they can gain from online streaming. In 2020, global gaming video content revenue climbed to $9.3 billion. 

One major trend in 2020 accelerated the growth of live video: COVID-19 lockdowns. Shutdowns pushed companies and industries who hadn’t previously been using live video to adopt it. In healthcare, the provision of telehealth saw a major boom during the pandemic years. In 2021, 17% of US patient visits were conducted via telehealth platforms. The mass proliferation of online and hybrid work has led companies of all sizes and stripes to incorporate live video elements into their work.

Over 80% of companies conduct employee interviews over video call as part of their recruiting process. Nearly half of webinars taking place are related to the onboarding and training of employees and customers.

In Conclusion

Even as concern for the pandemic dies down, live video growth shows no signs of stopping. A recent survey showed that 79% of customers have interacted with live video at least once in the past week. 3 in 4 CEOs say that video conference calls will soon replace all audio-only conference calls. By 2028, global revenue from live video is estimated to reach $184 billion. Going forward, the main issues stakeholders will have to address about live video streaming are bandwidth restrictions, quality control, privacy assurance, and compatibility across devices, browsers, and operating systems. Video meetings and live streaming are staples of modern life.