How to Choose the Best Online Concert Platform [2022 Update]

online concert platform

People love concerts, but sometimes it’s difficult to attend the shows they want to. Sometimes the location is an issue or tickets are too expensive. Other times, concerts simply sell out really fast.

One way that many promoters, bands, and event companies are overcoming these roadblocks is by live streaming concerts over the internet. To bring these online concerts and music festivals to life, a video streaming solution with a specific set of tools and features is a must.

In this post, we’re going to cover why live streaming a concert is a little bit different from streaming live events. From there, we will discuss 7 features to look for in an online concert streaming platform. Once you’re equipped with the information you need to choose one for your own broadcasting, we will compare some of the best live streaming platforms for musicians on the market.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

  • What is an Online Concert Platform?
  • Live Streaming a Concert vs. Other Events
  • 7 Features for Hosting Concert Live Streams
  • What is the Best Live Streaming Platform for Musicians?
  • Online Concert Streaming Trends in 2021 and Beyond
  • Final Thoughts

What is an Online Concert Platform?

An online concert platform is a live event streaming platform with specific features for hosting only music festivals and concerts.

The need for powerful virtual concert platforms has grown in the past few years as online events and blended events have grown in popularity.

Streaming concerts online is effective for both generating additional revenue and making the show available to more fans. This approach has proven effective since 38% of young music fans are interested in watching concerts online.

Lots of musicians and music festivals are getting in on this trend. One example is the huge music festival Coachella, which streamed live on YouTube for the first time in 2017. The Detroit Jazz Festival also streams live every year, as do countless other events.

Live Streaming a Concert vs. Other Events

online concert streaming platform
Broadcasting a concert requires more advanced tools than other virtual events.

Live streaming concerts are different from live streaming other events since the goals, audience, and expectations are different. Therefore, organizers need to take a unique approach to ensure that their live streams are successful. 

Concert broadcasting requires access to professional video hosting tools in order to prioritize viewer experience, which is important to keep in mind when choosing a platform for online concert streaming.

In addition to the software for hosting, you’re going to want to invest in professional-grade equipment for concert broadcasting. High-quality cameras and sound equipment are a must. For some types of virtual events, you can get away with an iPhone or tablet, but you can’t really get away with that when you’re streaming a professional live music performance.

7 Features for Hosting Concert Live Streams

As we mentioned, there are a few specific features that are very important for live streaming concerts. 

Let’s take a look at seven online video hosting tools that many concert broadcasters would say are essential when choosing the best platform for live streaming concerts.

1. High-Quality Streaming

Since you’ll want to make your virtual concert feel as lifelike as possible, it is important to prioritize the quality of your stream.

There are a few elements that you can control that factor into your stream’s quality. First, you’ll want to ensure that you choose an online video platform that is capable of HD or 4K streaming. This is usually made possible by using a powerful content delivery network (CDN).

Most online video platforms partner with a live streaming CDN, which is a network of servers that are generally spread around the world. The purpose of a CDN is to deliver content quickly to large, geographically distributed audiences. 

They do this by copying the stream as it’s being produced and broadcasting it from local servers to users in the area. This process is transparent to the viewers and ensures they get the best possible speed at any one time.

However, not all CDNs are created equal. In general, a video CDN with more servers will be able to deliver live streams faster and more reliably. Larger CDNs are also often able to invest in the latest technology to improve quality, security, and so on. 

On top of this, geography is a factor. The best live streaming CDN for you will have servers located geographically close to your main audience.

Another element to pay attention to is your own upload speed. Of course, this is unrelated to your online video platform, but it is applicable when it comes to producing a high-quality stream.

In general, we recommend using a connection with double the upload speed necessary for your stream. Figuring out exactly what that means involves adding up your bitrates, which you can learn more about in our article on bandwidth requirements for streaming live video.

2. No Viewer Limits

live music video streaming
Make sure that your chosen OVP doesn’t limit the number of viewers that can tune into your live music concert.

The next critical factor for streaming live music shows is having no limits on viewers. Major artists can easily attract hundreds of thousands, sometimes even millions, of simultaneous viewers. This can overwhelm some smaller streaming services.

A huge audience is a major success, so you don’t want to ruin that with lag or buffering.

Another way that online video platform limits can affect music producers is by restricting simultaneous streams. Many live streaming providers limit their users to a single stream at any given time. If your event features multiple stages, you’ll need to be sure your platform supports concurrent streams to make this possible.

3. White-Label Video Player

Licensing and branding are critical in the music industry where piracy is always an issue. Therefore, we recommend that you use an online concert streaming platform that offers a “white-label” service.

White-label means that the video stream doesn’t include the logo of the video service provider. Instead, you can insert your own branding or logos from sponsors or the band itself.

Consumer-grade, free streaming platforms like YouTube and Facebook don’t have this feature. Rather, they want the “free advertising” provided by their logo being on every video streamed on their platform. 

Most professional video hosting and streaming services will have this white-label feature, but often only with an expensive plan, so you’ll want to choose a solution that has white-label capabilities at the plan that falls into your budget.

4. Secure Paywall and Monetization Options

Many in-person concerts and music festivals are paid events, and live streaming concerts are usually the same. Otherwise, you could end up undermining your in-person audience.

A high-quality online video platform for live music streaming should include easy-to-use tools for video monetization. For live streaming concerts, this usually involves the “pay-per-view” or transactional model. 

If you take a pay-per-view approach, users will reach a video paywall when they visit your website. To pass the paywall, they enter their payment info and the show goes on. 

Advertisements and donations are also sometimes used to monetize live music streams.

Some OVPs don’t offer a paywall or have limited monetization features. Make sure to look into this before choosing your OVP. On top of that, make sure your paywall is secure so that your viewers can trust that their financial information is safe and sound.

5. Analytics Dashboard

live streaming analytics for online performances
A robust analytics dashboard is essential to measure the performance of streaming online live music performances.

Analytics and reporting tools gather data on the people viewing your live stream, which gives you a better idea of who your audience is. The type of data gathered by analytics tools typically includes:

  • Number of viewers
  • Geographic location
  • Amount of data transferred over time
  • Time spent watching
  • Revenue over time

This information is highly valuable for identifying where your online audience lives and other information that can help you make future events even more successful. Generally, video analytics data is gathered via a “dashboard” that can be customized to show the statistics that are most important to you.

6. Auto-Archiving

It’s a rule of thumb in the digital multimedia world that you should aim to have at least two backups of any important files. That rule definitely applies to concerts. 

Auto-archiving refers to the automatic recording of live streams. This is a convenient and easy way to maintain an off-site backup of your concerts. This method can be combined with local backups of your stream. This way, you’ll always have multiple copies of your live music stream.

Additionally, auto-archiving saves time if you’re going to make your live stream available for on-demand playback after your concert or music festival has ended. 

Since you don’t have to upload a local recording to your video host after the fact, auto-archiving allows you to start distributing the recording of the show almost immediately. That can help you capitalize on the buzz around the event, generate revenue, and please fans quickly. 

Some shows are even monetizing recordings by selling video or audio recordings of the show to fans as they are leaving the venue.

7. Privacy and Security

Video piracy costs broadcasters billions of dollars each year. That’s why it’s so important to protect your video content so that scammers cannot sell your live concert streams as your own.

Domain restrictions are a must for concert broadcasting. Essentially, this security measure makes it impossible to embed a video player on websites with uncertified domains. For example, if your website is “liveconcert.com,” you can set restrictions so that the live stream only plays from pages on that site.

Relatedly, you can use secure upload tools to make sure that nobody infiltrates your live stream in front of millions of paying viewers.

What is the Best Live Streaming Platform for Musicians?

As a music event coordinator, you need the support of a trusty online concert platform to bring your virtual event to life. There are tons of streaming solutions on the market that are suited for broadcasting events on different budgets with a wide range of unique feature offerings.

That said, let’s look at the top 20 platforms for live streaming music events, such as concerts and festivals.

1. Dacast 

online concert platform
Dacast’s live streaming platform is the leading professional online video and hosting solution.

Dacast is a full-featured online concert platform that supports both live streaming and VOD hosting.

With Dacast’s secure video hosting services, broadcasters can embed videos on their websites while maintaining 100% control of their content. Dacast offers an integrated paywall, password protection, referrer restriction, and an analytics dashboard, which are some of the most important features for live music event streaming.

Dacast distinguishes itself by offering high-end features with competitive pricing plans. These include ad-free broadcasting, white-label service on all plans, and top-tier CDN delivery. 24/7 phone support is also available for premium and enterprise-grade plans.

Additionally, the Dacast platform stands out from other OVPs with its ease of use and accessibility. Even new broadcasters can create a new live channel and start a new live stream in just a few minutes.

Key Features:

New!

Pros:

Cons:

  • Requires a bit of a learning curve for new broadcasters

Upload Guidelines and Specs:

  • Minimum dimension: one (but 240p is the recommended minimum)
  • Maximum dimension: 1080p or 4K (depends on the user’s hardware and internet)
  • Aspect ratio: No restrictions (but 16:9 is the default)
  • Max file size: None
  • Max video length: None
  • Total file storage: 10-1000GB (depends on plan)
  • Compatible video formats: MP4 (preferred), MOV, M4V, M2V, AVI, MPG, FLV, WMV, MKV, WEBM, OGV, MXF, ASF, VOB, MTS

Pricing:

Streaming platform pricing plans with Dacast start at $39 per month and are available in four packages:

  • Starter plan: $39/month (billed annually); ideal for newcomers with 1.2 TB of bandwidth and 50 GB of storage per year
  • Scale plan: $188/month (billed annually); includes 24 TB of bandwidth per year, with 1 TB of storage; adds phone support, monetization paywall, an M3U8 online player for live channels, ad insertion, white-label video player, and video API access. 
  • Event plan: $63/month or $750/year; best suited for organizations that would rather not sign a contract, and want to purchase bandwidth separately to live stream a music event; offers 6 TB of bandwidth upfront, 50 GB of storage
  • Custom plan: custom-priced; ideal for high-volume streaming needs

Additional bandwidth is available upon request for monthly plans. Read more here about Dacast’s live streaming pricing plans.

2. Brightcove

Brightcove Cloud Video Hosting Platform
Brightcove’s Video Cloud uses an innovative HTML5 video player with the latest ingest and transcoding technology. 

 

Brightcove is one of the oldest online video platforms in-game. Its top features include tools for live streaming and VOD hosting at an advanced level which makes Brightcove a great online concert platform.

Brightcove offers several modular products. These include: Video Cloud hosting, the Lift video player, Once for server-side ad insertion, Live for streaming video, OTT flow for internet TV, Zencoder for cloud video transcoding, and tools for monetization.

Brightcove’s features shine in the arena of analytics. This helps music broadcasters to get a better understanding of who is attending their events.

Although Brightcove doesn’t publish pricing information on their page, their plans are said to be quite costly. The high pricing makes this premier solution suitable for large event streaming.

Key Features:

  • Multi-bitrate and adaptive bitrate streaming for high-quality video 
  • Global content delivery
  • Basic tech support
  • Video API access for content management customization
  • Video security
  • Monetization support

Pros:

  • Powerful video analytics
  • Includes custom video portals
  • CRM integration

Cons:

  • Relatively costly
  • Monetization limited to custom-priced plans
  • No China video delivery

Upload Guidelines and Specs:

  • Minimum dimension: Determined by user
  • Maximum dimension: Determined by user
  • Aspect ratio: No restrictions (since Brightcove uses a responsive player)
  • Max file size: No limits on files size
  • Max video length: No published limits
  • Total file storage: Varies by plan
  • Compatible video formats: MP4, MOV, FLV, AVI, WMV, MKV, 3GPP

Pricing:

Brightcove offers several pricing plan levels but does not provide pricing. These include the following:

  • Starter: includes 50 to 200 videos, up to 100,000 plays, and 2-5 users
  • Professional: unlimited videos, 100,000+ plays, and no overages plays, with +10 users
  • Enterprise: unlimited videos, 100,000+ plays, and no overages plays, with 10+ users, unlimited upload, and analytics-only users

Brightcove also includes custom-priced plans for their Enterprise Video Suite packages. Interested broadcasters can contact their sales department to receive a quote or sign up for a 30-day free trial.

Although Brightcove does not publish pricing, past users have reported paying $500+ per month.

3. Livestream

Livestream Music Live Streaming
Vimeo’s Livestream offers live broadcasting and video hosting solutions for large-scale concert streaming.

Originally founded in 2007, Livestream was once one of the largest live streaming companies on the market. In 2017, Vimeo acquired the Livestream platform, and the two platforms have merged their services. 

Vimeo is still geared towards smaller-scale broadcasting, but the company offers premier live streaming and video hosting services under the Livestream name.

This basic functionality of Livestream includes analytics, a video management platform, privacy controls, and more, which are all important for concert live streaming. The platform also offers reliable tech support.

Key Features:

  • Live and VOD support
  • Powerful video CMS
  • High-quality video streaming
  • Large storage capacity
  • Privacy options to protect your content
  • Easy video upload

Pros:

  • Unlimited events and viewers
  • Ad-free streaming
  • Easy-to-use platform
  • Insightful video analytics
  • Pay-per-view monetization support

Cons:

  • Poor organic traffic on videos
  • Does not support China video delivery

Upload Guidelines and Specs:

  • Recommended dimension: 720p (1280 x 720)
  • Aspect ratio: 16:9, 4:3
  • Max file size: 3GB
  • Max video length: Information not available
  • Total file storage: Information not available
  • Compatible video formats: MP4 (recommended)

Pricing:

Livestream offers three main pricing plans, including Vimeo Premium, Vimeo Enterprise, and Vimeo OTT. The Premium and Enterprise plans are best suited for online concert streaming.

Here is a breakdown of the pricing and offerings of each plan.

Vimeo Premium:

  • Premium pricing: $75/month
  • Their Premium plan includes both live streaming and VOD support. This plan is the best option for professional broadcasting on this platform.

Vimeo Enterprise:

  • Enterprise Pricing: Please contact Vimeo for custom pricing information
  • The Enterprise plan includes white-label service, monetization, and video API access. It also includes branding control and added security features.

Vimeo OTT:

  • Starter Pricing: $1/subscriber per month
  • Growth Pricing: starting at $500/month
  • This OTT-specific pricing package comes with the Vimeo.com relationship. These plans include all the basics for starting your web-based OTT channel, as well as growing your OTT business online.

4. IBM Video Streaming

ibm video cloud live streaming platform
IBM’s steaming manager is an end-to-end solution, cloud-based OVP, ideally suited for live or on-demand content for Enterprise.

IBM Video Streaming, formally UStream, was founded in 2007 to connect military service members with family. IBM purchased UStream in 2016 and has sold the software under their name ever since.

IBM Live Video is primarily a live streaming company, but it supports VOD streaming as well. This platform also offers a unique Enterprise Content Delivery Network, which is different from the other online concert platforms we’ve discussed in this comparison.

IBM Video Streaming’s professional-grade OVP has solutions for live event coverage, video marketing, monetization, marketing, and more. Its inclusivity justifies its elevated price point and makes it great for streaming large music events.

Key Features:

  • Supports live streaming and VOD
  • Reliable content delivery network
  • Video distribution and workflow
  • OTT video management
  • Tools for video monetization

Pros:

  • Reliable video CMS platform
  • Suitable for larger-scale streaming
  • Responsive customer support
  • Fully loaded with professional features
  • Hong Kong video hosting

Cons:

  • HD and 4K streaming cost more
  • Limited closed captioning support
  • Limited accessibility

Upload Guidelines and Specs:

  • Minimum dimension: 480p (480 x 270)
  • Maximum dimension: 4K (3840 x 2160)
  • Aspect ratio: No published aspect ratio
  • Max file size: 4 GB
  • Max video length: No published limits
  • Total file storage: 1TB – 5TB (depends on plan)
  • Compatible video formats: MKV, MP4, MOV, FLV, AVI, WMV, MPEG2, H264, H263, MPEG4, VP6, VP8, THEORA, WMV, MP3, AAC-LC, NELLYMOSER, PCM, SPEEX, VORBIS, WMA

Pricing:

IBM pricing plans range from $99 to $999 per month and include the following:

  • Silver: $99/month
  • Gold: $499/month
  • Platinum: $999/month
  • Custom: Please contact IBM Video Streaming for custom plan pricing.

You can check out this third-party review for more details.

5. Muvi

muvi live streaming video platform
Muvi’s live streaming platform is an all-inclusive, fully managed OTT solution.

Muvi is another of the best live streaming platforms hosting concert streams. This online video platform empowers broadcasters to easily set up a professional site or app to display their concerts.

The best part is that the platform is very simple and straightforward, and it doesn’t require any coding and development expertise.

Since Muvi is equipped with OTT capabilities, it is great for hosting and monetizing replays of concerts and other music events. It’s also great for audio-only streaming if that is something that you’re interested in.

Key Features:

  • Custom branding
  • All-device HTML5 video player
  • Powerful analytics and reporting
  • Monetization options
  • DRM and security features

Pros:

  • Powerful CDN
  • End-to-end video CMS
  • Transcoding
  • DRM and other security features
  • Supports all-device streaming 

Cons:

  • Some features are hard to integrate 
  • CMS user interface can be overwhelming 
  • Does not support China video delivery

Upload Guidelines and Specs:

  • Minimum dimension: 144p (256 x 144)
  • Maximum dimension: 4K (3840  x2160)
  • Aspect ratio: 16:9, 4:3
  • Max file size: not available
  • Max video length: not available
  • Total file storage: 1TB, 2TB, 5TB (depending on plan)
  • Compatible video formats: MP4, MOV, MKV, FLV, VOB, M4V, AVI, 3GP, MPG

Pricing:

Muvi offers its platform in five different packages. The prices plans and features include:

  • Standard plan: $399/month (+ $299/month per app + infra fees), allows 2000 concurrent viewers, 1TB each of bandwidth and storage, and API access.
  • Professional plan: at $1,499 per month (+ $499/month per app + infra fees) increases limits further and adds premium support.
  • Enterprise plan: $3,900 per month (+ $499/month per app + infra fees) adds a dedicated server with auto-scaling.
  • Ultimate plan: $8,900/month (+ $499/month per app + infra fees) doubles the bandwidth and storage of the enterprise plan and adds your own CDN and unlimited API calls.
  • Black plan: this is a custom solution and includes everything in the Ultimate plan plus premium services and project management.

6. Panopto

Panopto Streaming Platform Dashboard
Panopto’s live streaming platform is a reliable solution for managing, streaming, and recording videos for any organization.

Founded in 2007, Panopto is a video company whose focus is on large-scale broadcasting. This platform supports video streaming, sharing, recording, and management. Currently, Panopto serves an audience of over 5 million end-users.

Panopto’s solution offers video management, recording, live streaming, video search, and analytics. Their video content management (CMS) system allows for the centralization of video streams, playlists, and playback.

Key Features:

  • Video capture and video-search software
  • Insights and analytics
  • Video security for safe streaming
  • White-label video player
  • API s for further integrations and customizations

Pros:

  • Audio-only streaming (in addition to video streaming)
  • Document indexing and full-text search
  • Asset categorization and organization
  • Customizable branding
  • Supports China video hosting

Cons:

  • No customizable templates
  • No SEO management
  • No version control

Upload Guidelines and Specs:

  • Compatible video formats: AVI, MP4, MPG, WMV, MOV, QT, ASF, 3GP, WMA, MP3, M4V
  • All other upload guidelines and specs are only available to paying customers. 

Pricing:

Panopto recently simplified its pricing packages and includes the following three options:

  • Basic: Free
  • Pro: $14.99/month
  • Enterprise: Please contact Panopto for custom pricing.

After establishing a contract, you have access to unlimited streaming and storage. However, this aspect may represent a potential downside for some streamers as Panopto does not handle any external-facing video content.

7. Kaltura

Kaltura streaming and business video hosting solution
Kaltura provides the widest range of live streaming video solutions for any company through engaging video tools.

With a video management foundation in its open-source software, Kaltura offers a unique focus on the live streaming market. Kaltura offers cloud-based video hosting and distribution services for both VOD and live streams. 

The fact that this platform can be totally customized makes it a great solution for music broadcasters that need more control over their streaming experience.

The downside of Kaltura’s extensibility, however, is that the platform can be confusing to use. With so many different features, it can be overwhelming for beginner users.

Key Features:

  • Multi-bitrate and adaptive streaming for high-quality streaming
  • Global content delivery via multiple CDN partnerships
  • Bring your own CDN option
  • Ticket-based tech support
  • Video API access
  • Reliable security feature
  • Monetization support (subscription, advertising, PPV streaming)

Pros:

  • Large collection of available features
  • Flexible monetization options
  • Robust security
  • Highly customizable

Cons:

  • Slow tech support (no phone or chat)
  • Highly complex platform
  • Requires technical experience to use
  • No China video delivery

Upload Guidelines and Specs:

  • Minimum dimension: 180p (320 x 180)
  • Maximum dimension: 1080p (1920x 1080)
  • Aspect ratio: 16:9, 4:3
  • Max file size: 2GB
  • Max video length: Not available
  • Total file storage: 10GB to Unlimited (depends on the plan)
  • Compatible video formats: MOV, MP4

Pricing:

Kaltura doesn’t publish pricing information on its website other than the cost of credits to redeem for access to features and bandwidth. For more details, you can read about this platform’s pay-for-what-you-use pricing model.

8. StreamShark

Streamshark Online Streaming Platform
StreamShark’s online concert platform features a live streaming workflow with easy-to-use features and global CDN delivery. 

Founded in 2011, StreamShark is another great online concert platform that provides a multi-faceted online video functionality. This platform is equipped with the technology required for fast and reliable content delivery.

StreamShark excels at making the live streams of large-scale, high-profile events a massive success with viewers having an exceptional viewing experience.

Their live event platform offers users the ability to efficiently and reliably manage the different phases of an event’s stream while ensuring maximum reach and reliability of the live stream via its multi-vendor approach and HLS ingests. Additionally, the company focuses overall on providing global video CDN services.

Key Features:

  • Global content deliver via a multi-CDN network
  • All-device streaming
  • Some viewer reports and analytics
  • Customizable live streaming video player
  • Privacy controls
  • Advertising and customer support

Pros:

  • Localized media ingestion
  • Support for video encoding
  • Redistribution technology
  • Increased storage space

Cons:

  • Cannot create channels
  • Cannot embed playlists
  • Limited video analytics
  • No China video delivery

Upload Guidelines and Specs:

  • Minimum dimension: 240p (426 x 240)
  • Maximum dimension: 1080p (1920 x 1080)
  • Aspect ratio: 16:9, 4:3
  • Max file size: not available
  • Max video length: not available
  • Total file storage: 500GB, 1TB, 3TB
  • Compatible video formats: HLS, WebM VP9, WebM VP8, WebM VP9 DASH, MP4

Pricing:

Monthly live streaming plans with StreamShark begin at $199 per month and include the following:

  • Standard: $199/month; includes 1,000 GB of bandwidth; 500 GB of VOD storage an additional overage of $0.10 per GB
  • Team: $499/month; includes 4,000 GB of bandwidth; 2,000 GB of storage, and lowers per GB overage prices to $0.09
  • Business: $999/month; includes 9,000 GB of bandwidth; 5,000 GB of storage, and reduces the overage to $0.08 per GB
  • Enterprise: Please contact StreamShark for their custom enterprise solutions and plans

9. SproutVideo

 

PHOTO: TBD

CAPTION: SproutVideo offers online concert streaming plans for every budget.

SproutVideo is an online concert platform that supports both live streaming and on-demand video hosting. The primary function of SproutVideo is marketing video hosting, but it is equipped with the tools that event planners need to host high-quality virtual concert events.

One major perk of SproutVideo is that it provides API access to customize your streaming experience and make the most of your virtual concert streams.

Key Features:

  • Live and on-demand video hosting 
  • API access for customization 
  • White-label streaming
  • Marketing tools 
  • Custom video galleries

Pros:

  • Pricing plans for every budget
  • Video player customization 
  • Brandable video players
  • Video analytics and reporting

Cons: 

  • Support is limited to higher-priced plans
  • Advanced security only comes with higher-priced plans
  • Some limitations on video searchability

Upload Guidelines and Specs:

  • Minimum dimension: None
  • Maximum dimension: None
  • Supported aspect ratios: Any
  • Maximum file size: Up to 100 GB
  • Maximum video length: Unlimited
  • Total file storage: 500 GB 
  • Accepted video formats: MP4, MOV, AVI, WMV, FLV, MKV, 3GPP

Pricing:

SproutVideo has four pricing plans, which include:

  • Seed: $24.99/month
  • Sprout: $59.99/month
  • Tree: $199.99/month
  • Forrest: $499.99/month

The bandwidth structure and storage allotments vary by plan. Please check out the SproutVideo pricing page for a complete breakdown.

10. Wowza

 

PHOTO: TBD

CAPTION:

Wowza is another powerful virtual concert platform with live and on-demand live streaming. This platform specializes in all-devices streaming, so your viewers can tune into your concert streams on their phones, tablets, gaming consoles, and more.

Wowza offers two main products, including the Wowza Streaming Engine and the Wowza Streaming Cloud. Wowza Streaming Engine is widely used in the industry for self-hosted streaming. Streaming Cloud, on the other hand, aims to provide low-latency content access to global audiences of all sizes.

Key Features:

  • Cloud management portal
  • High-quality streaming
  • Powerful security options
  • API access for customization
  • Closed captioning
  • Useful third-party integrations
  • Live stream recording

Pros:

  • Wide range of features
  • Secure streaming
  • Performance monitoring
  • Plans for every budget
  • Supports China video delivery

Cons: 

  • No monetization support
  • Single-camera feed only
  • No event scheduling

Upload Guidelines and Specs:

  • Minimum dimension: 240p (320 x 240)
  • Maximum dimension: 4K (3840 x 2160)
  • Aspect ratio: 16:9, 4:3
  • Max file size: Not available
  • Max video length: Not available
  • Total file storage: 250 GB (depends on the plan)
  • Compatible video formats: MP4, FLV, MP3, SMIL, AMLST, ID3, NGRP

Pricing:

Pricing plans from Wowza are broken down by Wowza Streaming Cloud plans and Wowza Streaming Engine plans.

Wowza Streaming Cloud offers pricing plans and services. Live Event Pricing, monthly plans include:

  • Pay As You Go: $29/month, with a 3-month minimum; flexible streaming with low startup costs
  • Basic: $99/month; includes 20 hours of live streaming and 1000 viewing hours based on video resolution of 720p
  • One Month Event: $149 one-time purchase; includes 20 hours of live streaming and 1000 viewing hours also at 720p
  • Plus: $499/month; includes 150 hours of live streaming and 7000 viewing hours based on video resolution of 720p

All of these Live Event plans include full brand control, multi-bitrate streaming, and HD and UHD streaming.

The Wowza Streaming Engine has its own pricing plans. These professional-grade streaming plans are billed annually and include:

  • Basic: $175/month + $195/month for each additional instance and $125/month for each additional prepaid instance
  • One Month Event: $295/month + $295month for each additional instance and $95/month for each additional prepaid instance
  • Enterprise: Please contact Wowza directly for access to their custom-tailored high volume enterprise solutions

11. JW Player

 

PHOTO: TBD

CAPTION: JW Player is a virtual concert platform with historic beginnings.

Today, JW Player is a full-service video streaming solution, but this powerful platform began as a small piece of open-source code to play audio and video files. This code served as the video player for the earliest version of YouTube.

JW Player supports both live and on-demand video streaming, so it is a great option for broadcasting concerts. It includes support for some powerful live streaming technology, including HLS adaptive live streaming, multi-bitrate transcoding, simulcast to FB Live, and real-time analytics. 

It is important to note that JW Player only supports live streaming on custom-priced enterprise plans.

Key Features:

  • High-quality streaming
  • Global content delivery
  • Tech support
  • API access for customization
  • Secure streaming
  • Monetization (via ads)

Pros:

  • Reliable video player
  • The platform is easy to use
  • Powerful advertising tools

Cons: 

  • 6-hour limit on live streams
  • Monetization is limited to ads
  • No China video delivery

Upload Guidelines and Specs:

  • Minimum dimension: 360p (640 x 360)
  • Maximum dimension: 1080p (1920 x 1080)
  • Aspect ratio: 16:9, 4:3, 2.39:1
  • Max file size: 25GB
  • Max video length: Not available
  • Total file storage: 25GB to 500GB (depends on the plan)
  • Compatible video formats: MP4, WMV, AVI, MOV, 3GP, FLV

Pricing:

JW Player offers a couple of different pricing plans. These include:

  • Free: 30-day free trial subscription which includes full API and SDK access, and a non-commercial license, with 25 GB hosting bandwidth and 75 GB streaming.
  • Starter: $10 per month; includes an HTML5 Video Player and video gallery, with 150 GB hosting bandwidth and 500 GB streaming (50,000 plays) per month billed annually.
  • Enterprise: Custom-priced for high-volume storage and streaming. Enterprise plans add support live streaming  

12. Cincopa

 

PHOTO: TBD

CAPTION: Cincopa offers multimedia hosting support

Cincopa is an online concert platform that offers multimedia hosting support. In addition to media hosting, Cincopa includes the tools that broadcasters need to live stream concerts.

What makes Cincopa particularly valuable for event planners and is that it supports integrations for a customizable streaming experience. This gives you, as a broadcaster, more control over the outcome of your virtual concert streams.

Key Features:

  • Live streaming 
  • Multimedia hosting
  • Reliable video player
  • Video monetization support
  • Integrations for a customizable streaming experience
  • CDN partnerships for reliable delivery
  • Secure streaming

Pros:

  • High-quality video streams
  • Professional streaming setup
  • Large collection of professional streaming tools
  • Customizable streaming experience
  • Responsive tech support 

Cons: 

  • Live streaming isn’t the main offering
  • Some complaints of media storage limits

Upload Guidelines and Specs:

  • Minimum dimension: 144p
  • Maximum dimension: 4K
  • Aspect ratio: 4:3, 16:9
  • Max file size: 1, 2, 20GB (depending on the plan)
  • Max video length: not available
  • Total file storage: 5 videos, 40 videos, unlimited videos (depending on the plan)
  • Compatible video formats: AVI, MOV, WMV, MP4, M4A, F4A,  F4B, F4V, F4P, M2TS, MTS, VOB, MKV, RMVB, M1V, QT, DIV, DIVX, DV, 3GP, 3GPP, 3G2, MPG, MPEG, MPE, FLV

Pricing:

Cincopa offers three different pricing plans, including:

  • Plus: $25/month; includes marketing tools (CTAs, email integrations, etc.)
  • Corporate: $99/month; advanced broadcasting tools
  • Agency/Enterprise: $350/month; advanced broadcasting tools with more flexibility

Please check out Cincopa’s pricing page for a further breakdown of storage and capabilities that come with each plan.

13. StreamYard

 

PHOTO: TBD

CAPTION: StreamYard is an in-browser virtual concert platform.

StreamYard is a little bit different than the other online concert platforms that we’ve covered since it is an in-browser streaming solution. This platform is relatively basic, but it will get the job done for music events that are on the smaller or simpler side.

Since StreamYard is an in-browser live music streaming platform, it provides a wide range of functionality without requiring any downloads.

Another notable aspect of StreamYard is the collection of brand customization features. Many users find these tools to be the most valuable.

Key Features:

  • In-browser live streaming
  • Band customization 
  • Cinematic elements
  • Built-in simulcasting support
  • Multiple sources 
  • Screen sharing 

Pros:

  • Easy to use platform
  • Geared towards delivering engaging content 
  • Great for streaming multiple stages or perspectives

Cons: 

  • Relatively basic platform 
  • No monetization support
  • No VOD support
  • Some limitations on browser compatibility 

Upload Guidelines and Specs:

StreamYard does not publish upload guidelines and specs.

Pricing:

StreamYard offers four pricing plans. These include:

  • Free: Access StreamYard on a limited basis for free.
  • Basic: $20/month; access some advanced streaming features, including unlimited streaming, brand customization, graphic overlays, simulcasting, and stream recording.
  • Professional: $39/month; increases usage limits
  • Enterprise: StreamYard also offers enterprise plans that are priced on a case-by-case basis.

The rates we’ve mentioned above reflect the monthly pricing when billed annually.

14. Uscreen

 

PHOTO: TBD

CAPTION: Uscreen is a virtual concert platform that specializes in OTT delivery. 

Uscreen is a live streaming music platform that supports both live and on-demand streaming. This platform puts a special emphasis on OTT delivery for streaming to all sorts of devices. 

This virtual concert platform is equipped with all of the tools that event organizers need to host and deliver high-quality music streams.

Something useful about Uscreen is that it offers an array of community-related tools. This is great for managers and event coordinators that plan to host a series of musical events. 

Key Features:

  • Live streaming and VOD hosting
  • White-label video player
  • Video analytics and reporting
  • Tools for growing your online community
  • Limited video monetization
  • High-level privacy and security

Pros:

  • Easy to get started
  • Appealing layouts
  • User-facing video galleries
  • Reliable customer service

Cons: 

  • Some settings require technical know-how or support from a developer
  • Some complaints about the analytics tool
  • Software is not updated with new features often

Upload Guidelines and Specs:

  • Recommended dimensions: 1080p/2k or smaller
  • Supported aspect ratios: Unavailable
  • Maximum file size: 13 GB
  • Maximum video length: Unavailable
  • Total file storage: 3000, 7500, 7500+ minutes
  • Accepted video formats: MP4 (Recommended)

Pricing:

Uscreen has three different pricing plans for music broadcasting, including:

  • Basic:  $79/month + $0.50/subscriber
  • Growth: $159/month + $0.50/subscriber
  • UscreenPlus: Customizable plans for enterprise users with greater needs

15. Brandlive

 

PHOTO: TBD

CAPTION: Brandlive specializes in virtual event streaming.

Brandlive is a virtual concert platform that is powered by in-browser streaming technology. Brandlive offers a variety of solutions, but its Event solution is the most effective for hosting virtual concert streams.

Brandlive also places a major emphasis on branded streaming. The solution is designed to ensure that your brand is at the front and center of all of your streams.

Key Features:

  • Live streaming
  • Brandable video players
  • Tools to encourage viewer engagement  
  • Event registration management
  • Customizable streaming experience via integrations

Pros:

  • Wide range of features
  • Multiple in-browser streaming solutions
  • Reliable customer service 
  • Professional streaming experience

Cons: 

  • Video production experience is necessary for best results
  • Some complaints of glitchiness from past users

Upload Guidelines and Specs:

Brandlive does not publish upload guidelines and specs.

Pricing:

Brandlive does not publish pricing information on its site. Interested users should reach out to Brandlive for a quote.

16. Qumu

 

PHOTO: TBD

CAPTION: Qumu is a powerful virtual event platform.

Qumu is a live music streaming platform with special support for virtual event hosting. This platform also offers support for on-demand video hosting.

Something unique about Qumu is that it supports offline viewing in addition to the online viewing experience. 

Key Features:

  • Live streaming
  • On-demand video hosting
  • Cloud-based video management 
  • Streaming from any source
  • Comprehensive video platform

Pros:

  • Large collection of streaming features
  • Unified streaming solution
  • Easy to use once you learn the system
  • Integrations for added convenience 

Cons: 

  • Requires a bit of a learning curve
  • Complaints about how the everchanging management team affects the product
  • The rapid growth of the company poses challenges to users who are getting used to the product

Upload Guidelines and Specs:

Qumu does publish upload guidelines and specs.

Pricing:

Qumu does not publish pricing on its website.

17. Hippo Video

 

PHOTO: TBD

CAPTION: Hippo Video is a great option for streaming concert replays for fans who missed the live event.

Hippo Video is an online concert platform that is designed for hosting and streaming engaging video content. Although the platform’s main focus is marketing, it has all of the tools that broadcasters need for streaming events in the music space.

It is important to point out that Hippo Video only offers native support for on-demand video streaming. However, live streaming is available through integrations.

That said, we recommend using Hippo Video as a solution to host and sell replays of your concerts as opposed to hosting live music streams.

Key Features:

  • On-demand video hosting 
  • Live streaming (through integrations)
  • Powerful hosting tools (transcoding, closed captioning, organization)
  • Video monetization (through integration)
  • White-label streaming
  • API access for customization

Pros:

  • Wide range of professional streaming features
  • Large collection of integrations
  • Video editing support
  • Lots of customization options
  • Screen recording
  • Tools for team collaboration

Cons: 

  • Live streaming is not a native feature
  • Some complaints about the reliability of tech support
  • Complaints of bugginess 
  • The built-in editor can be glitchy
  • The free trial is not well representative of the actual platform 

Upload Guidelines and Specs:

  • Minimum dimension: 480p
  • Maximum dimension: 1080p
  • Aspect ratio: not available
  • Max file size: 3 GB
  • Max video length: 5 minutes on Free plans, 2 hours on Premium plans
  • Total file storage: n/a
  • Compatible video formats: not available

Pricing:

Hippo Video has a complex pricing structure since it offers a variety of solutions for different use cases. Here’s a breakdown of pricing for the most popular categories:

Sales:

  • Pro: $30/month; 2 GB file size limit; 60 minute video length limit; white-label streaming; 200GB of bandwidth
  • Growth: $48/month; 3 GB file size limit; 120 minute video length limit; white-label streaming; 200GB of bandwidth
  • Enterprise: $79/month; contact Hippo Video to learn more

Marketing:

  • Starter: $23/month; 1 GB file size limit; 30 minute video length limit; white-label streaming; 200GB of bandwidth
  • Pro: $49/month; 2 GB file size limit; 60 minute video length limit; white-label streaming; 200GB of bandwidth
  • Growth: $99/month; 3 GB file size limit; 120 minute video length limit; white-label streaming; 200GB of bandwidth

Support:

  • Starter: $10/month; 1 GB file size limit; 30 minute video length limit; white-label streaming; 200GB of bandwidth
  • Pro: $29/month; 2 GB file size limit; 60 minute video length limit; white-label streaming; 200GB of bandwidth
  • Growth: $49/month; 3 GB file size limit; 120 minute video length limit; white-label streaming; 200GB of bandwidth

Team Communications:

  • Starter: $7/month; 1 GB file size limit; 30 minute video length limit; white-label streaming; 200GB of bandwidth
  • Pro: $15/month; 2 GB file size limit; 60 minute video length limit; white-label streaming; 200GB of bandwidth
  • Growth: $23/month; 3 GB file size limit; 120 minute video length limit; white-label streaming; 200GB of bandwidth

Other Solutions:

  • Education: Free to $9/month OR $1/user
  • Personalization: Starting at $109/month + fees
  • Recorder API: Contact Hippo Video for a custom quote

Hippo Video also has special pricing plans for Personalization and Education. Users can contact Hippo Video directly for recorder API pricing.

18. Flowplayer

 

PHOTO: TBD

CAPTION: Flowplayer was originally known for its powerful HTML5 video player.

Flowplayer is a live streaming music platform that is primarily known for its white-label streaming services. Flowplayer is also knowns as a powerful video monetization solution, which is especially valuable for broadcasters that are looking to monetize their virtual concerts.

The platform is the perfect mix of powerful and easy to use, making it a great option for broadcasters that want to produce a high-quality concert stream but have little to no streaming experience.

Key Features:

  • Live streaming 
  • VOD hosting
  • Powerful video player
  • Video monetization tools
  • Real-time video analytics

Pros:

  • Mobile streaming
  • Tools for marketing
  • Multiple options for video monetization
  • Dedicated customer support

Cons: 

  • No China Video Delivery
  • Very basic platform 

Upload Guidelines and Specs:

  • Minimum dimension: 240p (320 x 240)
  • Maximum dimension: 4K (3840 x 2160) 
  • Video aspect ratio: 16:9, 4:3
  • Max file size: Not available
  • Max video length: Not available
  • Total file storage: 250 GB (depends on the plan)
  • Compatible video formats: MP4, FLV, MP3, SMIL, AMLST, ID3, NGRP

Pricing:

Flowplayer has two pricing plan plans, including: 

  • Starter: $49/month; 500 GB of bandwidth; includes 50,000 monthly plays, custom player, video management, playlists, and analytics
  • Enterprise: custom-pricing; custom-built to cater to advanced streaming needs

19. YouTube 

YouTube Live Video Streaming Platform
YouTube is a great consumer-grade streaming platform.

YouTube was one of the first platforms to make online video streaming popular, and it has grown exponentially in the past decade. This Google-owned website is designed for consumers, but many businesses use it while they are getting into broadcasting.

It supports both VOD and live streaming, but the most popular content on the platform is on-demand videos.

YouTube is not necessarily the best option for hosting large events, but it can be a great option for indie artist management companies that want to publish footage of their clients’ shows. It can also be used for smaller-scale events.

Please keep in mind that YouTube is primarily a consumer-grade video-sharing platform. It is free to use, but its functionality is very limited.

Key Features:

  • Live and VOD hosting
  • Ad-based monetization is limited to users with a larger group of followers
  • No real security features
  • Popular among viewers
  • Easy to share videos
  • Videos can be embedded in other websites
  • Cannot remove YouTube’s branding

Pros:

  • Free to use
  • Viewers are comfortable using the platform
  • Very simple to use
  • Easy to embed video player

Cons:

  • No white-label video player
  • Limitations on live streaming functionality
  • Strict content restrictions
  • Broadcasters forfeit partial rights to your content
  • Distracting third party ads and branding

Upload Guidelines and Specs:

  • Minimum dimension: 240p (426 x 240)
  • Maximum dimension: 4K (3840 x 2160)
  • Aspect ratio: 16:9 (adds padding to videos with other aspect ratios)
  • Max file size: 128 GB
  • Max video length: 12 hours
  • Total file storage: No storage limit
  • Compatible video formats: MP4, MOV, MPEG4, FLV, AVI, Web M, WMV, MPEG-PS, 3GPP

20. Facebook Live

Facebook Live Streaming Platform
Facebook Live is a social streaming tool.

When it comes to broadcasting, Facebook has similar functionality to YouTube. It is a free, social, consumer-grade platform with very basic functionality. Facebook offers both “Live” and “Watch” which allows event coordinators to host on-demand content or broadcast live content. 

Facebook is commonly used by event coordinators that are new to streaming their events since it is free and easy to use. It is a great tool for gaining a bit of experience before investing in a professional solution.

Live streams can be hosted on personal profiles, pages, and groups, but on-demand “Facebook Watch” videos can only be published by Facebook Pages.

Since it is a free platform, Facebook poses many challenges related to video ownership, time limits on videos, monetization, and more. Aside from those few technical restrictions, live streaming with Facebook Live is valuable for connecting with existing audiences. 

It is common for broadcasters who use premium streaming solutions to connect their accounts to multicast to both Facebook and their websites. This allows users to tap into their existing Facebook audiences while accessing the professional tools of a video hosting solution.

Key Features:

Pros:

  • Free to use
  • Viewers are familiar with the platform
  • Live chat promotes engagement
  • Connects with an existing streaming platform

Cons:

  • Limited monetization options
  • Not suitable for charging “admission” to virtual concerts
  • No real security options
  • Time limits on live videos
  • Cannot remove Facebook’s branding

Upload Guidelines and Specs:

  • Minimum dimension: 720p (1280×720) 
  • Maximum dimension: 1080p (1920×1080)
  • Aspect ratio: 16:9, 9:16, 2:3, 4:5, 1:1
  • Max file size: 4 GB
  • Max video length: 90 minutes
  • Total file storage: No storage limit
  • Compatible video formats: MP4, MOV, MPEG4, AVI, 3GPP, WMV, FLV, MKV

Online Concert Streaming Trends in 2021 and Beyond

The music industry has seen many changes in the past two years, and digitalization has been at the forefront. Much of this change was brought on because of the pandemic. Although concert venues are opening back up, the effects of these changes will likely last for years to come.

Here are a few trends to pay attention to in online concert streaming:

  • 73% of music fans have watched a live stream concert
  • 80% of music fans would be willing to pay for a virtual concert from their favorite artists
  • Virtual concerts have become popular as a result of the pandemic
  • Blended (in-person and live streamed) concerts remain prominent as COVID restrictions are lifted
  • “Nostalgic” virtual concerts became popular throughout the pandemic and could be here to stay
  • Musicians bring fans together from around the world by hosting virtual charity concerts
  • The rise of online video has made it possible for indie artists to build their fanbases

Check out our live streaming statistics post for more online video stats and trends.

Final Thoughts

Bands, producers, and event hosts have a great deal to gain from expanding their live music concerts to a global audience via a live streaming setup

Live broadcasting concerts can seem intimidating, but with the right online concert streaming platform, you should have no trouble getting started. Luckily, this post has provided all the information you need about choosing a streaming platform with the best features for the task at hand.

Not sure where to go from here? We recommend checking out our comparison of the best live streaming platforms, then taking advantage of free trials from different streaming solutions to get a real feel for their features.

Dacast offers a risk-free 14-day trial that provides access to all of the powerful features we’ve covered in this post. Why not give it a try to start your search on the right foot?

All you have to do is create a Dacast account to start your trial. No credit card is required.

Get Started For Free

We love to hear from our readers. Let us know what you think in the chat section below and we will answer any questions you may have.

For regular live streaming tips and exclusive offers, you can also join our LinkedIn group.

Thanks for reading and good luck with your live streaming!

Max Wilbert

Max Wilbert is a passionate writer, live streaming practitioner, and has strong expertise in the video streaming industry.