...

How to Create a Live Streaming App?

How to Create a Live Streaming App?

Visualize this: Your users have been waiting to witness the BTS or Blackpink perform live at a virtual concert. Finally, the moment arrives! Jungkook or Lisa takes the stage to perform the fan’s most expected loop-mode favorite song. Alas! The video stream suddenly starts buffering. The video freezes, the audio snips out, and many are left gazing at a spinning loading icon while millions of other fans are screaming in frustration worldwide.

By the time the stream continues, Your viewers may have missed the best part of the performance. Moreover, the emotional bond they were excited about slipped through their fingers. It can be devastating for anyone who counts on virtual concerts, to experience their favorite K-pop stars up close. Here more than a technical issue—it’s a significant blow to your user’s fan experience and, in the worst case, It may lead to backlash and you could even see an uncontrollable flood of aggrieved comments on social media.

The rise of the popularity of virtual K-pop Band concerts, various other concerts, workshops, and even webinars worldwide is the result of live streaming becoming a critical part of the entertainment industry. These events never fail to hook in millions of viewers across the globe, and with such a huge live stream viewers, the anticipations for reliability and high-quality streaming are sky-high.

At the same time, you must also realize that ensuring a smooth live stream for millions of viewers isn’t as easy as it sounds because,

Lagging or buffering during key moments may arise due to network congestion. Server overload for high-demand streams may lead to crashes. The concert experience will get easily spoilt if there are low-resolution or audio issues.

So, to deliver an unforgettable virtual experience be it for a global sensation or a smaller-scale webinar, it’s much needed to create a reliable and high-quality live streaming app. Expertise developers can nail this, leaving viewers cheering instead of frustrated. Now, how is that possible? Just keep reading this blog to know all the ins and outs of the step-by-step live streaming app development process and answer the big question, How to create a live streaming app? and a lot more.

How to Create a Live Streaming App in 7 Steps?

The advancements in technology are the reason for the global live streaming market to boom. And, businesses are finding ways to harness the power of live streaming to effectively connect with their audience. You ensure smooth, high-quality streaming using a robust content delivery network (CDN) to optimize performance and minimize latency. You may be an entrepreneur or a growing business, but building your own video streaming app can provide you with endless opportunities. So, check out ways to create a thriving live video streaming application with the following 7 essential steps.

Step 1

Like a game of chess, it is all about how well you are planning your moves. So, undoubtedly market research and defining your app concept come first. Realize that preconceptions and guesses are your enemies and gather real-time data on the needs of your audience. Try finding appropriate answers to the question, Who is my target audience? What do they like to watch? What devices they use and so on.

Step 2

Analyzing these aspects in the early stages of development makes the development process not just easy but a lot more effective. Simply trust my experience- it works!

Step 3

After getting a detailed picture of how your app should be, it is completely fine to move on to the design phase. This phase decides the look and feel of your app. Once again I’d suggest you hire team Appkodes and get the job of UI/Ux with the best UI designers from our live-streaming app development company or invest in Code Canyon. Yes, Code Canyon is safe and reliable. Remember your video streaming platform is to live stream video so, a minimalist content-oriented design should do the job for you. And if you need more help with this phase read: How to Choose a UI Design Agency for Startups?

Step 4

Having completed the market research and the design phase, you have to plan the nice-to-have features for your live streaming platform. Apart from HQ video and audio streaming, other crucial aspects take your live-streaming app from good to great. So, find out the Nice-to-have features for Your Live Streaming Platforms( Link to appropriate H2 in this same blog)

Step 5

Now that you have a plan, and design, and are also well-informed of the features to be included in it. Then next comes the development phase where all your ideas grow wings. This is usually said to be the most labor-intensive and time-consuming process. It involves.

  • Frontend and backend development.
  • API integration
  • Setting up servers for streaming.

Setting Up Servers for Live Streaming Apps

The server topology is the most important element to provide and support live high-quality video streaming. You can use an optional dedicated server, a cloud-based service such as AWS or Google Cloud, or choose the best CDN for websites and apps depending on the quality and speed of the video streaming that has to be provided.

Live Streaming Development - CTA

API Integration

The client and the server communicate with each other using an API (Application Programming Interface) that is a very useful addition if you need to expand the system’s functions without altering its fundamental principles. API contains information on how clients should make requests and how the server must respond to the specific request. So, for streaming video, you may need to integrate the APIs of live video services like Wowza, Vimeo, or Agora. In addition, you may want to include payment integration (via in-app purchases or subscriptions through Stripe or PayPal), and social media sharing (through Facebook or Twitter) for effective user access to content. This improves the interaction of users with the app and helps in its expansion.

Now, you need an effective backend to effectively manage all of this. This is where Node.js, for instant chat, or Pusher.io and MongoDB come into the picture. Node.js fuels the server by handling API requests in real-time, while MongoDB functions as a scalable database that lets you handle large amounts of data like as user profiles or video metadata seamlessly.

Front-End and Back End Web Development Development

Web Development consists of the front end and the back end. There is this visible part of your app used by the user; the interface of such a component is often called the front end. Make an engaging user interface using modern technologies such as React, Angular, Vue.js, etc. The backend is the core of your app consisting of the server, application, and database. It’s the server that receives requests from the client and the application contains logic on how to generate responses back to the client this happens when the application accesses the database where all the information is stored. You can develop efficient back ends that are capable of accommodating the ever-increasing number of users by using Node.js, Django, Ruby on Rail, etc.

Front-End and Back End Web Development Development

Source: https://miro.medium.com/

Step 6

Next go ahead ensuring the smooth working by testing and scrutinizing the performance of the app, its security features, and the way it responds under various network conditions. I will never compromise on testing. You too will if, delivering a robust functioning app is the top priority.

Step 7

And finally, you get to launch your app. And at this juncture remember the task hasn’t ended but just begun. Your responsibility doesn’t lessen with making the app available in the Google Play Store and App Store. There need to be regular updates made to it. Carry out improvements to meet the ongoing trends to keep the app up-to-date in terms of streaming services.

Therefore, this is exactly your development journey, and this is not meant to be easy or without hits and bumps like the rest. With a perfect knowledge of the fundamentals of live-streaming.

The Fundamentals of Live Streaming Apps

Make sure your developers focus on these three components while building your video streaming apps, Video Streaming API, Live Streaming SDK, and HTML5 Video Players.
(refine the following components)

What are Stream APIs?

An API (Application Programming Interface) is a term that describes a set of standardized ways in which developers interact with a certain platform. In live streaming there are two basic types of APIs; the Video API i.e. for video content management and backend management, and the Player API for video player management. This equips the developer especially with the useful designer interfaces APIs to reduce time in integrating services, especially with Dacast.

What Does Live Streaming SDK Mean?

SDK (Software Development Kit) is simply a means of easing the app-building process. The live-streaming SDK consists of libraries, documentation, and examples available for app developers to use to make mobile apps rapidly. SDKs for iOS, Android, and other platforms provide built-in features such as content monetization analytics, video streaming content security, and more in a single package. The Dacast SDK will also help push forward faster app development without the need for the use of traditional, slower m3u8 links.

What is an HTML5 Video Player and Why it’s Used?

The importance of the HTML5 video player in today’s live streaming apps cannot be overstated, given its versatile usage across all devices and browser types, in contrast to the old Flash players which were device-specific. It uses Apple’s HLS protocol.

This way altogether, these technologies become the backbone of live-streaming app development. Whereas, as the heading rightly points out these three are the basic must-haves. What about those extra nice-to-haves?

The Nice-to-have Elements for Your Live Streaming Apps

Do not forget to include a compromising and engaging intro and take forth the below future titles along with the sub-topics explanations

Scalability and Performance

CDN: Distribute content among various servers and ensure a larger number of views.

Adaptive Bitrate Streaming: Modify the video quality concerning the network.

User Experience

Intuitive Interface: Able to use comfortably without much training.

Low Latency: Reduce the gap between the happening event and the viewer.

Monetization Strategies

Advertising: Create ad formats such as pre-, mid, and post-roll ads.

Subscriptions: Introduce premium subscriptions with additional content or features.

Pay-per-View: This allows users to pay for selected streaming content or events.

Security and Compliance

Data Privacy: Protect personally identifiable information of users and meet local laws.

Streaming Content Moderation: Ensure that inappropriate or abusive material is not distributed.

Analytics and Optimization

Track Metrics: Evaluation of the performance of certain key performance indicators (KPIs).

Iterate and Improve: Analysis of the video analytics collected makes it possible to define all weak points and improve them.

Taking these additional words along with the needful appendices, one can create a proper live-streaming application. But how will you make sure that the platform you have created has a good user experience and how well does it satisfy the requirements of your customers?

Tips to Provide Seamless Streaming for Viewers

Here are a few tips to stream seamlessly yet if you are looking for how to improve live streaming quality, it involves techniques and expertise. To provide quality streams for your viewers you need to know about the technical aspects of it in detail along with these few tips given below.

Tip #1: Either pick a Reliable Streaming Platform otherwise, you can even try solutions like Red5 Pro or Nimble Streamer for better control.

Tip #2: Provide a reliable connection with acceptable upload bandwidth to Optimize Network Infrastructure.

Tip #3: Invest in powerful servers to bring in the Appropriate Hardware by investing in a powerful server.

Tip #4: Balance Video Quality and bandwidth by adjusting the bitrate.

Tip #5: Before going live it’s better to Test and Optimize potential issues. At the same time don’t miss to collect viewer feedback for adjustments.

Guarantee a seamless live streaming experience for your audience by mastering the technical aspect of live streaming and also by keeping up with these tips.

Do you know the technology stack for Live Video Streaming App Development?

Component DescriptionExamples
HardwarePhysical equipment used for capturing and processing content.Cameras, microphones, encoding devices
SoftwareApplications and tools for managing and delivering content.Streaming servers, CDNs, transcoders, player software
Cloud InfrastructureScalable resources and services hosted on the cloudCloud storage, cloud computing, cloud databases
Programming Languages and FrameworksTools used to develop the app’s backend and frontend.Python, Node.js, React, Angular
APIs and SDKsTools used to develop the app’s backend and front end.Video streaming APIs, chat APIs, analytics APIs

What are the Types of Live Streaming Apps?

Live streaming apps are incredibly diverse. The types of apps are based on their function of addressing the needs of various audiences. Broadly, they can be categorized into the following,

Live Broadcasting Apps

The apps that let you broadcast audio and video directly to your audience come under live broadcast apps. The apps like

  • Twitch  
  • YouTube Live  
  • Facebook Live  
  • Instagram Live  
  • Periscope  
  • Apple Tv

Live Streaming Platforms

These platforms with the perfect infrastructure and technology for businesses and organizations to stream live events are live streaming platforms. Such platforms are,

  • Livestream
  • Wowza  
  • Dacast  
  • Ustream  

Live Streaming Apps for Specific Industries

Now the live streaming apps can again be divided based on industries as they can be personalized to meet the specific needs of industries, like gaming, education, healthcare, and e-commerce. For example,

  • Twitch (gaming)  
  • Zoom (education)  
  • MedLive (healthcare)  
  • Shopify Live (e-commerce)  

Live Streaming Apps for Social Media

Apart from various industries, these apps can be integrated with social media platforms to let users share their live streams with others. And, you have well known-examples like  

  • TikTok Live  
  • Instagram Live  
  • Facebook Live  

Live Streaming Apps for Mobile Devices

Apart from the above, live streaming apps can be optimized for mobile devices. these mobile development software allows users to stream live content on the go like,

  • Periscope  
  • Meerkat  
  • Streamlabs Mobile  

These are the different types with a few examples that include the popular live streaming apps. The best app for an entrepreneur will depend on their specific needs and goals. But why do you need to build such an app?

Why Build a Live Video Streaming App?

Gaming, live events, and even everyday chats are all about connecting people across the globe. Therefore, building a live video streaming app is like playing the lead role in the entertainment niche! With this rapidly increasing craving for real-time, interactive experiences, your platform can be the go-to spot for creators and fans alike. And, apart from popularity, there is a lot more you can reap out of a well-designed live-streaming platform. So, just keep scrolling to know the trends and benefits of the same.

An Overview of Live Streaming’s Growing Popularity Across Industries

The changing tech trends and consumer habits are the reasons behind the explosive growth in live streaming. The global live-streaming market is anticipated to reach not less than $534 billion by 2030. And in addition to this, the advancements of social media platforms, OTT services, and eSports channels keep drawing in millions of daily viewers. Now this must let you envision the major role to be played by live streaming in the future of content consumption.

The global reach of live streaming is unparalleled, as platforms like YouTube, Facebook, and Twitch have massive international audiences. YouTube often brags over 2 billion active global users, most of them consume live content.

Live streaming is not limited to entertainment but a cross-industry adoption. Industries ranging from education, healthcare, eCommerce, and gaming have all embraced live video as their prime medium for communication and engagement.

Live video offers unmatched interactivity and engagement via real-time comments, Q&A sessions, and audience polls. This creates a two-way dialogue that pre-recorded content is not capable of and leading to much higher viewership retention rates.

Live Streaming App

The Potential Benefits of Building a Live Streaming App for Various Sectors.

There are several advantages to developing a live-streaming app. It’s not the same for every industry. The potential benefits are vast and varied for each of them

Interactive Capabilities

Various sectors be it retail, education, entertainment, or events can produce engaging, interactive, receive user feedback as well as engage using live content, and two-way communication methods. This makes customers feel appreciated and satisfied which in turn makes them loyal to the company.

Much Wider Audience

Live streaming apps have no geographical boundaries, they can simply reach customers located in any part of the world in a blink. This aspect is of great importance when it comes to eLearning industries, Students from any corner of the world are put into virtual classrooms.

Revenue Streams

Live video offers a gold mine. Yes, companies can diversify their income through advertisements, selling subscriptions, and selling tickets to live events. For example, you can find in-app purchases and paid subscriptions in many established e-sports and gaming platforms.

There is a competitive format in live streaming and it’s called a Live PK Battle (Player Kill Battle) In this two or more streamers face off in real-time. And, in turn, they also engage with their audiences through performances, games, or challenges. Viewers can show their support to their favorite streamers by sending them virtual gifts. These gifts can be translated into points. Yes, you guessed it right, its the best monetization strategy for the video streaming platform.

How PK Battle Helps with Revenue Generation in Live Streaming Apps?

  1. Users buy Virtual Gifts using real money. These gifts can be stickers or anything. Then they send this to their favorite streamers. This will help the platform generate direct revenue.
  2. This also Increases Engagement as the competitive spirit encourages more interaction from viewers. This may lead to exclusive content and anyways, the watch time and frequent app usage will increase.
  3. In the same way, higher viewership, shall automatically attract sponsorships and Ads, your additional revenue streams.

Apart from boosting user engagement PK Battle greatly contributes to the monetization opportunities for live-streaming apps.

Efficiency on Costs

For fields like education or corporate training, live streaming creates an option for revenue generation on venue expenditures, travel expenses, and logistic issues. It offers an effective, inexpensive method of making interactive content available to the masses.

Creating a Live Streaming App: 100% Transparent Development Cost Breakdown

Developing a live video streaming app can be more expensive compared to regular applications that follow the CRUD (Create, Read, Update, Delete) method due to its complexity and infrastructure needs. Here are some key factors to consider:

Infrastructure Costs: You will need an AWS (Amazon Web Services) setup, which can cost around $300.

Then A basic server to handle traffic will cost about $150 to $200. Along with it your preferred best video streaming servers. This will add another $300 to the budget.

Now many may suggest WebRTC. While WebRTC is a free streaming solution, the freemium version lacks premium features and scalability. This way it becomes less ideal for professional app development.

So to set up even for a basic MVP of your streaming app, the total cost cannot be less than $500, this may fluctuate depending on the server and technology stack you choose.

I don’t fake cost figures. I need you to realize the reality that live streaming apps require advanced infrastructure, which can make the overall cost up to 10x higher than other apps. Now, this can’t be altered whereas can be made worthier by working with expert developers who understand the complexities. Appkodes development team has the required experience and expertise over decades in helping live video streaming businesses avoid overspending and potential financial pitfalls.

How Dev Squad of Appkodes Help You Develop a Cost Effective Live Streaming App?

Most developers would follow a traditional server setup to handle high traffic. This demands investment in expensive high-end servers that are equipped with powerful processors, ample RAM, and extensive storage capabilities. These storage are designed with a vision to handle resource-intensive apps and large-scale user interaction. These might not always be in use during low-traffic periods. This proved to be the main reason for the fixed costs regardless of app activity.

AppKodes’ Optimized Infrastructure Approach uses an auto-scaling technology model. In which, we have a Main Server + Support Servers

The core operations of the app will be handled by the main server. However, this server is not operating alone but is backed by 100 support servers. These support servers will not always be running but they will be on standby. They shall be activated only when needed.

As the name suggests the Auto-scaling means that the system automatically adjusts to the number of active support servers based on the demand or traffic at any given moment. Now at the time of low traffic, only the main server (and a few support servers) will be active. Thus, your operational costs will be low.

AWS scaling

Let us say your app is experiencing high traffic, now more support servers will automatically come online. And they will ensure a smooth streaming experience. As soon as the traffic decreases, the system will save resources by deactivating the other servers.

The large amounts of user interactions and transactions are managed with the help of the cluster-controlled database. It makes that data to be consistently available and processed in parallel to support the app’s performance, especially during peak loads. This is complemented by a load balancer distributing incoming traffic evenly across multiple servers. This is how it prevents any single server from becoming overwhelmed.

This way we deliver a cost-efficient, scalable infrastructure. Interested in handling traffic spikes smoothly without overpaying for constant high-maintenance servers? Can’t believe that we are keeping development costs low while ensuring high performance? Then test the waters for yourself by scheduling a meeting with our team.

The market may be flooded with streaming service providers yet, none can parallel the trustworthy and real-time live streaming business guidance provided by our team. Video streaming app builders at Appkodes help you innovate the impossible.

Starting as an iOS developer and moving up to lead a mobile team at a startup, I've expanded my expertise into Project Management, DevOps and eventually becoming a COO & Chief Service Officer in the IT sector. As a CSO, I excel in team leadership, technical advice, and managing complex business functions, focusing on combining technology and operations to drive growth. I'm keen to connect for collaborations or to exchange insights in the tech world!


popup-contact

Hurray..!!!emoji

Get in touch with our expert support team to find a lot more on the demo and pricing. It’s

 just a click away.