Video streaming is a multimedia format wherein a user is able to access, download, and play video files simultaneously. This differs from other media formats wherein a user must download a digital file before being able to play it. There are many different ways to access streaming services, these range from computers, to smartphones and tablets. Limitations and quality of streaming exist however, (if a user does not have up-to-date software, bandwidth issues, or older technology) as a result the user may have poor streaming quality, or the inability to stream at all. Currently the most popular streaming services on the internet are [1] YouTube and [2] Netflix.
A second form of streaming (termed live-streaming) is a growing a popular platform wherein viewers receive 'live' or 'current' video broadcasts in the form of entertainment, news, and video podcasts. The most popular live-streaming service is [3] Twitch.tv.
Creation-
[4] Progressive Networks (now known as RealNetworks) is credited with beginning the video streaming industry in early 1995 with their REAL platform of audio and video streaming. Microsoft, a major technology player at the time was also present for the introduction of streaming. However, most of Microsoft's technological advances at the the time came in the form of storage options (CD-ROM, server storage). Dan Rayburn states,[5] "Progressive Networks rightly deserves a lot of the credit and was the primary company responsible for the wide adoption of audio and video streaming with content owners, and consumers, from 1995 to 2002." (source)
Breakthrough-
Streaming was slowly gaining traction. Finally in 1999 streaming exploded when [6] Victoria's Secret did a live webcast of their fashion show which had viewership reach millions. Almost overnight millions knew the benefits of streaming and it's place in the internet environment was solidified.
While streaming became mainstream in 1999, it had a long way to go to take on the powerful dominance of cable and satellite television. Finally in 2005 YouTube was created, quickly it gained popularity and was soon joined by websites such as [7] Hulu, Netflix, and Twitch.tv. The capabilities of these websites increased users access largely to entertainment, and education. YouTube also popularized uploading by allowing anyone who has an account to upload videos to YouTube servers which could be viewed by anyone.
Hulu, and Netflix popularized television and movie streaming in an "on-demand" format, allowing subscribers to pay fees to access movies and television shows which can be viewed immediately.
With the introduction of live-streaming the major player is Twitch.tv.
Hulu and Netflix are similar in many ways: For starters you have to pay a monthly membership fee if you were to have either one of these stream movies. They both have a wide variety of different genres of movies and TV shows that you can watch. The downside of watching TV shows on Netflix is that you have to wait months after the next season came out before they update it. Where with Hulu you can watch the new episode the day of making it so that you don't have to wait until the whole series is over before you can watch the latest episode. A downfall is the amount of time it can take to stream your shows depending on how fast your internet is. Each of these have their own perks you can watch things on one that the other probably doesn't have which is why many people have both services.
Copyright Issues and Piracy-
[8] The largest problem with video streaming is copyright. Such large numbers of users uploading in massive numbers can make finding copyrighted content difficult to remove. However, companies who host the content are liable for damages the owner of the video sustains. However tactics by an up-loader often involve distorting the copyrighted material (smaller images within the video player) to circumvent automatic removal of copyrighted materials.
Internet Video Streaming
Summary
Video streaming is a multimedia format wherein a user is able to access, download, and play video files simultaneously. This differs from other media formats wherein a user must download a digital file before being able to play it. There are many different ways to access streaming services, these range from computers, to smartphones and tablets. Limitations and quality of streaming exist however, (if a user does not have up-to-date software, bandwidth issues, or older technology) as a result the user may have poor streaming quality, or the inability to stream at all. Currently the most popular streaming services on the internet are [1] YouTube and [2] Netflix.A second form of streaming (termed live-streaming) is a growing a popular platform wherein viewers receive 'live' or 'current' video broadcasts in the form of entertainment, news, and video podcasts. The most popular live-streaming service is [3] Twitch.tv.
Creation-
[4] Progressive Networks (now known as RealNetworks) is credited with beginning the video streaming industry in early 1995 with their REAL platform of audio and video streaming. Microsoft, a major technology player at the time was also present for the introduction of streaming. However, most of Microsoft's technological advances at the the time came in the form of storage options (CD-ROM, server storage). Dan Rayburn states,[5] "Progressive Networks rightly deserves a lot of the credit and was the primary company responsible for the wide adoption of audio and video streaming with content owners, and consumers, from 1995 to 2002." (source)Breakthrough-
Streaming was slowly gaining traction. Finally in 1999 streaming exploded when [6] Victoria's Secret did a live webcast of their fashion show which had viewership reach millions. Almost overnight millions knew the benefits of streaming and it's place in the internet environment was solidified.Widespread Use-
[image taken directly from Youtube.com]
While streaming became mainstream in 1999, it had a long way to go to take on the powerful dominance of cable and satellite television. Finally in 2005 YouTube was created, quickly it gained popularity and was soon joined by websites such as [7] Hulu, Netflix, and Twitch.tv. The capabilities of these websites increased users access largely to entertainment, and education. YouTube also popularized uploading by allowing anyone who has an account to upload videos to YouTube servers which could be viewed by anyone.
Hulu, and Netflix popularized television and movie streaming in an "on-demand" format, allowing subscribers to pay fees to access movies and television shows which can be viewed immediately.
With the introduction of live-streaming the major player is Twitch.tv.
Hulu and Netflix are similar in many ways: For starters you have to pay a monthly membership fee if you were to have either one of these stream movies. They both have a wide variety of different genres of movies and TV shows that you can watch. The downside of watching TV shows on Netflix is that you have to wait months after the next season came out before they update it. Where with Hulu you can watch the new episode the day of making it so that you don't have to wait until the whole series is over before you can watch the latest episode. A downfall is the amount of time it can take to stream your shows depending on how fast your internet is. Each of these have their own perks you can watch things on one that the other probably doesn't have which is why many people have both services.
Copyright Issues and Piracy-
[8] The largest problem with video streaming is copyright. Such large numbers of users uploading in massive numbers can make finding copyrighted content difficult to remove. However, companies who host the content are liable for damages the owner of the video sustains. However tactics by an up-loader often involve distorting the copyrighted material (smaller images within the video player) to circumvent automatic removal of copyrighted materials.References:
1. https://www.youtube.com/2. https://www.netflix.com/5. "The Early History Of The Streaming Media Industry and The Battle Between Microsoft & Real". StreamingMedia.com. Retrieved 19 February 2016.
http://blog.streamingmedia.com/2016/03/history-of-the-streaming-media-industry.html.
6. https://www.victoriassecret.com/
7. https://www.hulu.com/
8. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copyright_aspects_of_downloading_and_streaming
Additional sources and overview:
1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Streaming_media