Check out our latest new feature… Guest Broadcasting! :O

younowblog:

“Two is ALWAYS better than one.” This is why we are proud to announced the launch of our new feature: Guest Broadcasting!

This Guest Broadcasting post will break down both sides of the new feature: Guest brodcasting as Host and as a Guest.

1. Broadcasting as a Guest  

During a live broadcast, users can become an eligible to be a guest broadcaster by clicking the Guest Broadcast button.

Clicking this button will bring up the Camera and Mic setup screen. After passing the test, users will then be dropped into the Guest Lineup, seen by the main broadcaster ONLY. 

After becoming a potential guest broadcaster, users can toggle on / off their guest status. Toggling off will remove you from the guest lineup. 

  

When an invite is sent, potential guest broadcasters will hear a ring and see a pop up on the screen:

Once the invite is accepted, the guest will join the live broadcast!

Guest broadcasters have the option to drop themselves from the broadcast by simply clicking the Drop button. (see below)

Once the guest broadcaster is removed from the broadcast, he/she will be placed back into the Guest Lineup.

2. Broadcasting as a Host:

Once live, broadcasters have the option to invite guests to their broadcast. There are three ways to invite a guest, and each will bring up the invite panel.

1. Clicking the guest’s name in the Guest Lineup.

2. Clicking the guest’s name in the chat or leaderboard.

3. Clicking the guest’s name in the queue. Users in the queue that have guest broadcasting enabled will have a green indication on their thumbnail.

Once an invite is sent, the invitee will have 10 seconds to accept or reject invite. The host will be notified when user has accepted or declined.

The host has the ability to drop the guest broadcaster at any moment during the broadcast by clicking the Drop button on the guest side of the broadcast.

Once a guest is dropped, the host can invite another user to broadcast.

You’ve asked for it and we delivered! Guest broadcasting is now active in Talk+ and Shows2, and will be rolling out on other channels in the future. Please remember to leave your comments below about guest broadcasting. We want to hear your thoughts and opinion!

In light of Instagram’s success, many rising mobile video apps have endeavored to become the “Instagram for Video.” Companies like SocialCam, Viddy and more have shown prodigious growth in app downloads / monthly active users, but I wonder if these users will truly remain active after the initial buzz dies down.

I came across an interesting post tonight by Semil Shah, which echoed sentiments that I’ve had as of late… 

One thing Instagram really has going for them is that it transforms users into artists, essentially… empowering them to capture fleeting moments and make them magical in a way that is easy and fun to consume.

But there’s something different about video… Videos generated in a moment don’t quite have the same effect or ease of display that photos do. Perhaps users need more skill to make their videos look exceptional…  It seems much more difficult to make video work. 

In his post “Photographs > Video?” Semil brings up some good points as to why he is somewhat skeptical about video:

1. “I’m not sure if it’s a core behavior as snapping pictures is”
2. “the current interfaces seem to deemphasize “capturing video” as a feature within the camera interface”
3. “even if core behaviors change and/or the software around the video camera evolve, there are technical hurdles that would need to be overcome in order for the average phone user to capture and share a video that would meet the requirements the audience’s time to consume that media.”

I tend to agree with Semil’s skepticism about video… to some extent, at least. Regarding Semil’s first point about user’s core behaviors not including video… I don’t think this is much of a problem, as I believe these behaviors will change very soon. (he mentions this himself in #3.) And while current interfaces may “deemphasize capturing video,” fortunately I also believe that mobile UI improvements will make videos even more enjoyable to create and share.

What really made me go “hmm” was Semil’s 3rd point: that users would encounter technical hurdles preventing them from being able to deliver to the standards of their audiences. At first I was like, “my thoughts exactly”… just throwing a filter and a music loop over your video clip doesn’t necessarily make it “magical.” There are more moving parts when it comes to video.

…but then I thought, well what about LIVE mobile video? 

                       

At YouNow I’m constantly trying to imagine the future of video… how it will be transformed by mobile, and how users’ core behaviors will evolve over time. People have lower standards (at the moment) for live video - that’s just the nature of it. A trade-off is made, sacrificing production quality in return for experiencing something genuine and raw. While live videos by and large are not (yet!) Mona Lisas, they certainly whet social users’ appetites for intimate engagement.

Perhaps live video could reach audiences despite their technical high standards for video content. I have to think a little bit more about this… but what do you guys think?