Corporate Live Streaming: What Solution Do you Need?

Online video is the dominant communication medium in the world today. In recent years, businesses of all types have been getting involved in corporate live streaming. In total, the global enterprise video market is expected to reach $40.84 billion by 2022. Do the math, and that represents an annual growth rate of more than 20 percent. This trend clearly reflects how important video is to the modern corporation, and points to the key role of corporate live streaming today.

In this post, we’ll examine how corporations are using online video and what tools you need to succeed. After reading, we hope you’ll feel confident to choose from among the many available streaming solutions for your corporate live streaming. Let’s jump right in!

Table of Contents

• Communications, Marketing, Training, and Events
• Equipment Considerations
• Budget Considerations
• Online Video Platforms for Corporate Live Streaming
• Key Features for Enterprise Users
• Conclusion

Communications, Marketing, Training, and Events for Corporate Live Streaming

In a business setting, the most common uses of corporate live streaming are internal meetings, conference keynotes, marketing, and internal updates or announcements. Let’s look at these use-cases now.

Not surprisingly, video use is incredibly common in marketing. To name one example: video content makes online purchases 1.6x more likely. Video can also be effective in email marketing, product demos, and so on.

Internal training is a good way to ensure that your business passes on institutional knowledge. Moreover, internal training can also save you a lot of money. Microsoft, for example, estimates that it was able to cut annual costs of $13.9 million by investing in a video training platform. That amounts to an ROI of 569% on their initial investment in the system.

Events are another great way to use video in a corporate setting. Some event planners fear that live streaming will decrease in-person attendance. However, research has found that the opposite is true. Around 30 percent of people who watch a live stream event will attend in person the following year.

Equipment Considerations for Corporate Live Streaming

Now, let’s discuss some live streaming equipment considerations corporations may need to look at. The fundamental needs for live streaming are cameras, microphones, internet connection, and an encoder. In general, corporations should choose to invest in high-quality, durable equipment from name brands.

Encoders come in two different types: hardware and software. Hardware encoders are dedicated pieces of equipment most suitable for studio or other professional use. They are also ideal for some mobile streaming applications. Software encoders run on a computer and are common these days.

To learn more about microphones, check out our blog on audio for streaming video. And if you’re looking for camera recommendations, we have a guide for that too.

Budget Considerations for Corporate Live Streaming

Another important set of considerations for any business is live streaming pricing. Fortunately, this concern is much less of an issue than it was in the past. Today, high-quality 4K video cameras and high-end audio equipment is more affordable than ever before. Encoding equipment has falling prices too.

Quality of your video content reflects on your business. High-quality content is appreciated by employees, partners, and the public alike. Therefore, you should always strive for excellent technical quality. These capital costs will result in equipment that lasts for a long time.

As far as ongoing expenses, professional online video platforms are increasingly capable and cost-effective. Staff costs are usually the most significant portion of your ongoing expenses. But trained staff are essential for quality. Another consideration is bandwidth costs. Bandwidth costs can add up if you’re streaming a significant quantity of high-quality video. Use a bandwidth calculator to get a sense of costs based on your predicted bandwidth usage.

Online Video Platforms for Corporate Live Streaming

The best way to deliver and scale online video today is to use an online video platform or OVP. An OVP is like a more professional YouTube. Instead of catering to consumers, however, an OVP focuses on business.

Few media businesses are prepared to build the technology stack to create for online video from scratch. Therefore, using an OVP is the best alternative. A professional OVP can enable you to deliver content rapidly and reliably. Likewise, with an OVP for corporate live streaming, you can scale to a massive audience via global Content Delivery Networks (CDNs).

Key Features for Corporate Live Streaming

The corporate live streaming market includes a range of OVPs. Different platforms have different features, of course. But not all measure up to the demands of corporate live streaming. Let’s take a look at some of the key features many corporate users consider a necessity.

Enterprise-Grade Content Delivery

Quality is important. One survey showed that 62 percent of viewers are likely to view a brand more negatively if they publish a poor quality video. Any professional live stream needs to reach viewers reliably. This is perhaps the most important bottom-line for any live streaming platform. And it’s even more important when it comes to business use.

Free video platforms may go down for maintenance at any time. They may not even inform users beforehand. Using a professional OVP ensures reliability. That’s especially true if your OVP uses a high-end CDN, such as Akamai.

If you do business in China, you should know that most OVPs don’t deliver video well in this location. However, some OVPs have gone through the process of gaining required permits and can deliver high-quality video playback in China.

Video API

Nowadays, most businesses are migrating to API-based workflows for online video. That’s because APIs, or Application Programming Interfaces, are incredibly powerful. They allow you to custom code applications and services integrating OVP services. An API is the best way to build a mobile app, create a custom video portal, or integrate with existing SSO and other intranet applications.

Using a video API is essential in modern business. But not all OVPs offer APIs. Alternately, some do offer APIs but only include them with certain plans. Make sure to read all of the details before committing to an OVP.

Analytics

Ideally, hard data should drive and inform corporate video efforts. Forrester reports that 74% of firms say they want to be “data-driven,” yet only 29% are actually successful at connecting analytics to action. The first step in rectifying this for corporate live streaming is to gather robust data on your videos. This allows you to make informed decisions about investments, modify your video strategy, and so on.

Content Security

Security is essential in a corporate environment. As you likely know, the consequences of security lapses can be huge. Proprietary information and copyrighted material need to stay safe. But that’s not easy. In the U.S. alone, piracy costs $29.2 billion annually.

Professional-grade OVPS for corporate live streaming offers a range of security features. Some only include a couple of basic security options. But others provide an extensive collection of tools for video security. Some features you may find necessary for your security needs include:

• AES encryption
• Password protection
• Domain restriction
• Geographic restriction
• Token-based security
• SSL encryption for payments

Monetization Functionality

The final feature we’ll highlight here for corporate live streaming is monetization. Video monetization is increasingly common. As we mention in the introduction, all kinds of businesses are making billions with online video. Some of the most commonly monetized content includes sports, entertainment/OTT, educational/eLearning, and events.

There are three main ways to monetize online video today: advertising, transactions (pay-per-view), and subscriptions. Each method is appropriate for different situations. Ideally, your chosen video platform should provide all three. And even if you’re not planning on monetizing now, you might want to do so in the future. Choose an online video platform that provides you with room to grow.

Conclusion

In this post, we’ve introduced you to the requirements for corporate live streaming in 2019 and beyond.

With that info in mind, do you need an enterprise video platform for your corporate live streaming? If you’re still weighing your options, we recommend that you check out the Dacast platform. Among other benefits, we include a range of advanced live streaming and VOD functionality to all our broadcasters. And that includes all of the features discussed above–and more! In addition, Dacast offers some of the best pricing on the market.

But you don’t have to take our word for it! Are you interested in testing out the Dacast platform? If so, just click the button below to sign up for our 14-day free trial (no credit card required). We’ll have you up and streaming in a matter of minutes! And remember, our team is available to talk with you 24/7 about your specific corporate live streaming needs.