StreamGuys offers live streaming, podcasting delivery, and SaaS tools for enterprise broadcast media organizations, providing a robust, scalable platform for business growth and revenue generation.
StreamGuys will introduce an ultra-low-latency streaming service (ULLS) at IBC, designed to synchronize live sports events with alternative commentary and enhance the in-venue experience by minimizing streaming delays. The service uses low-latency protocols to eliminate typical streaming delays and integrates with SGrewind for live DVR functionality. It supports real-time captions and works within sports apps for seamless fan engagement.
This service addresses the problem of streaming delays disrupting the synchronicity of live sports viewing, allowing fans to enjoy synchronized audio and video streams, enhancing both at-home and in-venue experiences. It also offers broadcasters a way to provide a seamless, high-quality streaming experience without requiring specialized equipment.
StreamGuys will introduce a new ultra-low-latency streaming service at IBC that brings synchronicity to the “second screen” experience of a live sports event, removing the delay that takes live game action and audio/video streams out of alignment. The company’s new ULLS service provides broadcasters with the tools to synchronize the two experiences, returning control to fans that want to listen to alternative commentary – and providing stadium management with a way to make live streaming a part of the in-venue experience.
The StreamGuys workflow first ingests streams into its Contribution Network, an enterprise-level streaming media ecosystem to move self-produced, locally originated, and/or third-party media content onto the public internet for end user consumption. StreamGuys employs low-latency streaming protocols inside the Contribution Network workflow that erase the delay at the output, where its HTML5-based SGplayer presents the live video or audio-only stream to the audience.
“This returns the live broadcast to the spectator who enjoys listening to the local team announcers as they watch the game from the stands or in their homes,” said Eduardo Martinez, Vice President of Technology, StreamGuys. “That experience hasn’t been possible with streaming technology that typically adds 18 to 30 seconds of latency. We’re introducing widely supported low-latency protocols into our solution that produce a harmonious experience.”
StreamGuys has also built a bridge between ULLS and its SGrewind service, which gives listeners the power to return to a previous moment in the game. StreamGuys achieves this by simultaneously recording the ULLS stream to an SGrewind buffer, essentially providing the audience with the audio equivalent of a live DVR. StreamGuys has also engineered the ULLS service to support standards-based CEA-608 captions from broadcasters, with SGplayer presenting real-time captions for the deaf and hard of hearing in sync with audio streams.
Martinez adds that the streams will ideally be consumed within an app related to a sports league or club where fans can engage with other services, such as purchasing tickets, merch or food and drink from concessions. The protocols employed will also deliver high-quality streams without consuming much bandwidth, producing a seamless consumption experience even when the stadium capacity is full.
At IBC, StreamGuys will present a live demo with a low-latency and high-latency stream side by side that will allow visitors to compete the difference. “We will present a clock in the playout system so that people can see the real-time outputs from each stream and compare them to what they are watching,” said Martinez. “On the input side, our technology works with any audio or video streaming encoder that plugs into our ingest system. It’s all standards-based, with no specialized components required. As long as we can get it onto our Contribution Network, we can provide that experience fans have been missing for years.”
StreamGuys is an official co-exhibitor with ENCO at IBC this year at Stand 8.C76. IBC takes place September 13-16 at RAI Amsterdam.
