Live streaming's usage has been growing steadily over the past few years, in large part due to the pandemic, and is expected to increase further in 2023 with its use in e-commerce experiencing a particularly sharp boom. Gonzalo de la Vega, VP strategic products at Fastly, explains how broadcasters can meet consumers' expectations with their live stream offerings
By Contributor
Published: December 1, 2022
Live streaming's usage has been growing steadily over the past few years, in large part due to the pandemic, and is expected to increase further in 2023 with its use in e-commerce experiencing a particularly sharp boom. Gonzalo de la Vega, VP strategic products at Fastly, explains how broadcasters can meet consumers' expectations with their live stream offerings
target=_blank title=Share on LinkedIn class=share-linkedin>
Live streaming consumption has significantly increased over the past few years. According to research carried out by Cisco in 2021, video represented 80 per cent of total global internet traffic, with live video accounting for 13 per cent of this. For a range of reasons, this is only going to continue to increase in 2023.
Brands are increasingly choosing to rely on live streaming to drive their marketing strategies. While YouTube advertising will remain a central pillar of any online video campaign, contenders, such as TikTok, which recently launched Tik Tok Shop, are only going to gain momentum and see use as a channel for B2B marketing, rather than just as a tool to reach customers. The pandemic has caused a fundamental shift in the way consumers approach the buying experience, accelerating the adoption of online shopping, and this is the natural next step in this evolution.
A further trend we've seen throughout 2022 has been that the streaming giants have continued to put out content at tremendous pace. Netflix and Disney have worked to satisfy consumers' thirst for content by investing heavily in constantly renewing their offering, while live streams of sporting events - such as the Premier League by Amazon and Serie A by DAZN - have placed this tech at the forefront of the entertainment industry.
These signs all point towards the continued growth of the streaming industry. Here's how broadcasters can ensure they keep these experiences running as smoothly as possible.
Unlocking the power of edge computing and real-time observability
The growing prevalence of live streaming highlights broadcasters' need for expertise, knowledge and best-in-class technology. These allow the delivery of secure, fast and reliable streaming services.
From a technological standpoint, edge computing brings multiple advantages when it comes to live streaming. Locating servers closer to their target audiences enables broadcasters to improve performance and massively reduce latency. This is because, with edge computing, data flows directly from the edge servers to the user, allowing for request times to be cut by up to 90 per cent.
This performance increase comes in the context of a rapidly evolving and highly competitive live streaming landscape where user expectations are constantly growing. Efficiency and speed are elements of paramount importance for broadcasters aiming to provide best-in-class services. With so many new players in the market, OTT providers and broadcasters will need to work extra hard to win over undecided customers with reliable streaming services.
Real-time observability plays a pivotal role in this. Rather than simply monitoring ( observing the state of a system across a period of time), observability provides the information needed to make decisions in real time. By unleashing the power of real time data, observability enables broadcasters to achieve a deep and comprehensive understanding of a system and of what can be improved. Thanks to real-time observability, it is possible to react to setbacks quickly and efficiently. However, this also has potential drawbacks, due to the range of available data and broadcasters need to learn which metrics should be prioritised to reach their desired results.
Build stacks to support your streams
Simply leveraging the right technology is not enough to deliver successful live streaming experiences. Broadcasters should dedicate time and energy to carry out a thorough stack assessment ahead of key events. This includes, among other things, load testing and the implementation of configuration changes on-the-fly for all the partners a broadcaster relies on. It's important to remember that there are no second chances with live streaming. In order to be fully prepared for major events, broadcasters can conduct a dry-run with a smaller event. This gives them the opportunity not only to test technology and processes, but also to gather data facilitating the optimal delivery of more important events.
Making audience projection is also crucial. Although predicting the audience size of a live streaming event with accuracy is a near-impossible task, making an educated guess is highly recommended. Broadcasters should generate audience projections both for the most likely scenario and for the best-case scenario, so as to ensure that there is the necessary capacity reservation in place. The old saying better safe than sorry' has never been more true.
With demand for live streaming services soaring, broadcasters need to take advantage of the latest technology and of an effective strategy to deliver fast and safe digital experiences. Shifting away from centralised infrastructures in order to embrace the myriad benefits of edge computing promises to be a major move in 2023.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
07/10/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
22/07/2026
Among other tweaks to coverage, the broadcaster added announce positions in the ...
22/07/2026
The Australian Sports Technologies Network (ASTN) has reported a sharp acceleration in Australia's sportstech sector, with revenue growth rising from 10% in...
22/07/2026
From a retrofitted broadcast bus to packed Match Day Live! events, Bennett detai...
22/07/2026
TMRW Sports has named Brendan Donohue as President, Flag Football, where he will lead the company's professional flag football business in partnership with ...
22/07/2026
Stephen Arnold Music (SAM) designed and produced soundtracks for nine projection...
22/07/2026
Harmonic has announced a $25,000 donation to Global Empowerment Mission (GEM) fo...
22/07/2026
Telemundo has announced it has acquired from UC3 exclusive U.S. Spanish-language...
22/07/2026
The Rest Is Football, hosted by Gary Lineker, Alan Shearer, and Micah Richards, ...
22/07/2026
Sports Studio has announced a partnership with TheSoul Group to distribute Free ...
22/07/2026
Daktronics has concluded its 2026 High School Video Summit, a two-day hybrid event combining virtual sessions with hands-on host school visits across the countr...
22/07/2026
FOR-A America will exhibit at the MMCA Show in Pensacola, Florida (July 21-24), marking the company's first appearance at the house of worship AV event. FOR...
22/07/2026
The New York Yankees have selected Lumen Technologies (NYSE: LUMN) to connect Ya...
22/07/2026
Calrec will exhibit at IBC 2026 (Stand 8.C47) with demonstrations of its IP-native audio ecosystem built around the Argo console range, and will announce two ne...
22/07/2026
Solid State Logic has announced the appointment of Algam EKO as its distributor for SSL large format consoles in Italy, covering the Live, Broadcast, and Studio...
22/07/2026
FloSports has announced the launch of the FloSports Channel, a free ad-supported streaming channel premiering on Prime Video in the U.S. on July 21. The channel...
22/07/2026
Banana Ball TV (BTV), the broadcast operation of the Savannah Bananas, has insta...
22/07/2026
SiriusXM and Audacy have announced an agreement bringing 42 Audacy sports, news, and talk stations from 29 U.S. markets to SiriusXM. Twenty-three Audacy sports ...
22/07/2026
The collaboration produced more than 500 short-form videos across four cities th...
22/07/2026
At 2,600 sq. ft., the new home of digital content houses a main studio, podcast space, and an auxiliary control room
NFL franchises are accelerating their prod...
22/07/2026
Library now available in Engine Player
Another of Eduardo Tarilonte's popular sample libraries has just been moved over to Engine Audio's Engine Pla...
22/07/2026
All-in-one mic & DSP interface overhauled
Cloudvocal have just refreshed the design of their all-in-one mic, audio interface and DSP processor, introducing ...
22/07/2026
The final boss of the lost dual-op-amp circuit
Electro-Harmonix have just introduced the Deluxe Big Muff Pi 2, which they say offers their latest take on t...
22/07/2026
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({ content_source:......
22/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
22/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
22/07/2026
Proven managed IP solution helps broadcasters confidently navigate the future of broadcast distribution
LTN announces it has completed successful satellite-to-...
22/07/2026
Today, Chaos announced V-Ray 7, update 4, eliminating the need for asset conversions and tool switching, which slow down media and entertainment pipelines. Arti...
22/07/2026
An AI playground for the Project Indigo camera app
Marc Levoy July 22, 2026
0 Comments
At left is the user interface of our Playground, running on an ...
22/07/2026
Custom Consoles announces the completion of a large technical furniture project for Radio T l vision Suisse (RTS) at the networks recently inaugurated productio...
22/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
22/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
22/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
22/07/2026
Culver City, CA, July 21, 2026 3D streaming infrastructure provider Miris today announced glTF intake, including the binary .glb form, to its spatial streamin...
22/07/2026
Documentary Lo Invisible Captured with Blackmagic PYXIS 6K
Brie Clayton July 21, 2026
0 Comments
Camera's versatile design allowed filmmakers to c...
22/07/2026
AAF Bridge converts AAF and XML Timelines to Ableton Live - and back
Jerome Gardier July 21, 2026
0 Comments
A two-way converter for macOS and Windows...
22/07/2026
From Class to Concert: Explore a Student-Led Production of David Bowies Work Thr...
22/07/2026
A poisoned spy, a secret war, and a small English city contaminated by a deadly chemical weapon. Available on Sky Documentaries from 4 AugustWednesday 22 July 2...
22/07/2026
Audio at Parity: Comscore Launches Transcript-Level Targeting and Measurement wi...
22/07/2026
Arvato Systems and Lobster Enter into a Partnership and Combine the Integration Platform and Managed Services
Flexible integration solutions for cloud, hybrid...
22/07/2026
RT REPORTS NET SURPLUS OF 22.5 MILLION IN 2025...
22/07/2026
In the Opinion of the Censor airs Monday 27 July at 9.35pm on RT One and RT Player
In the Opinion of the Censor looks at how films for theatrical release wer...
22/07/2026
Before a healthcare robot can be useful in the real world, it has to learn how the physical world pushes back. Anatomy varies. Instruments bend, press, slip and...
21/07/2026
New research involving a cross-section of Mongolias independent media landscape finds enthusiasm for AI as a tool to improve efficiency, sustainability and resi...
21/07/2026
With winners Spain having already paraded the World Cup trophy through Madrid in front of millions of fans and the dust now settling on an epic tournament of th...
Live streaming's usage has been growing steadily over the past few years, in large part due to the pandemic, and is expected to increase further in 2023 with its use in e-commerce experiencing a particularly sharp boom. Gonzalo de la Vega, VP strategic products at Fastly, explains how broadcasters can meet consumers' expectations with their live stream offerings 
