Live Webcasting Services

Webcasting is broadcasting media over the internet to listeners and/or viewers in real-time.

This streamed media event can be accessible to one or multiple parties simultaneously. Webcasts also have the flexibility to be viewed live in real-time or on-demand.

Video-conferences, meetings, and interviews are some of the events that leverage webcasting technology and its capabilities.

No matter the look, our team of webcasting specialists can host, manage, and broadcast your event or presentation.

Benefits of Webcasting

The major and most obvious benefits of webcasting are its ability to broaden the reach of your communication while reducing the costs associated with hosting and producing a physical event.

Live trainings, seminars, and large events are costly productions that require considerable planning and effort. Travel, venue rental, food, and accommodations are just a few contributors to its substantial costs, which add up fast.

X No Catering

However, utilizing webcast technology enables your organization to execute an event at a fraction of the cost, but still accomplish mass reach, scale, and the visibility of a worldwide audience.

Events That We Webcast Most Often

With the unavoidable impact of COVID-19, things have evolved, and you need a dependable method to broadcast your events and content reliably and securely. With years of experience and various satisfied clients, rest assured we have the formula for webcasting success.

Allow us to ease your worries and handle the “what if” concerns specific to your event type. Below are some events we are often asked to webcast and perform virtual event production services for:

Corporate Meetings

Product / Sales Presentation

Our webcasting process is streamlined and dependable, enabling our project managers to focus on your needs, event type, and specific goals.

We accommodate events of all types, so when you request a demo, your project manager will walk you through our processes, hear your requirements, then free you up to focus on what matters.

Webcasting Technology and How It All Works

Broadcasting live media online requires hardware, software, and access to the internet. Because streaming information isn’t saved to a hard disk, the webcasting system must be configured and integrated properly.

The webcasting technology system and components work as follows: First, the video camera captures audio and video, and the data is transferred through a host computer that’s running streaming software.

Because video and audio files are large, speed and file size are considerations when sending a live stream across the internet. This brings us to our next step, which is to compress and digitize your media (audio and video) through a process called encoding. H.264, MPEG-4, and Windows Media Video (WMV) are common video compression technologies, also known as codecs. MP3, Advanced Audio Coding (AAC), and Windows Media Audio (WMA) are the common audio codecs.

Once encoded, the content is uploaded to the cloud via a distributed server system known as a content delivery network (CDN). The multi-node CDN quickly broadcasts the content to the viewer or listener as a livestream, or it hosts “on-demand” media for later access.

Once delivered as a live stream or on-demand to a viewer’s computer or device, a video player software that can decode and convert the data stream is required to process and play the webcast. Apple Quicktime, Adobe Flash, RealPlayer and Microsoft Windows Media are streaming and media publishing programs that have integrated players capable of processing and playing your live webcast or on-demand stream.

Live Webcasting Versus On-Demand

While a webcast or webinar can be broadcasted live or consumed on-demand, on-demand media is process fundamentally different.

On-demand media is saved to a hard disk or server and accessed later, while a live webcast stream are happening in real-time and only available while the event is happening.

A live stream can be recorded, but think of a webcast much like a pay-per-view event, and on-demand content similar to a Netflix show.

Webcast versus Webinar

Webcast and webinar are often confused and used interchangeably. Either can be live or pre-recorded, but a webcast is any physical event that is broadcasted online, while a webinar is an online presentation that’s typically a workshop, seminar, or training.

Webcasting is more general and all-encompassing, which is why it’s often used broadly when referring to streaming an event video over the internet.

However, there are various virtual event formats, and referencing a conference, hybrid event, or webinar provides more clarity and specificity when describing your needs.

A webcast is simply any event broadcasted online, but a webinar is a more presentation-oriented format where teaching or instructing is the intent.

Webinars are generally educational or informative in nature, so the format and structure should be well planned and considered. While there is no limit, the most effective length of a webinar is around 60 minutes.

A webinar is frequently used as a top of the funnel marketing mechanism that introduces a product or service. However, depending on the strategy and intent, it can be a singular recording, or have multiple episodes and be part of a larger series.

Hosting Your Webcast

When deciding the best way to host your webcast, first you must consider if you have the time and want the responsibility of figuring it all out, or if you prefer hiring an expert to manage the process and ensure everything goes without hitch.

If you decide to stream and host the webcast on your own, to avoid hiccup with a self-service webcast, you need to access a professional-grade webcasting technology (media publishing and streaming platform) that combines and integrates with your existing technology and equipment infrastructure.

On the other hand, a managed webcast is performed by a webcasting company. Logistics, filming, broadcasting and distribution are part of the end-to-end service that subtracts you from the planning and technical responsibility.

All aspects of equipment configuration and streaming are handled, and any issues or technical concerns are eliminated. Not to mention if you need to save the live stream or incorporate animation and graphics, your webcasting provider can make it happen.

You get one opportunity to execute a webcast, but if you choose to do it yourself, do your homework and test your setup before the event. However, if you have never produced a live webcast, it is suggested you eliminate the unnecessary stress, hire an expert like webcastingandvirtualevents.com, and enable yourself to focus on the bigger picture and what matters.