Rerun Rewind: 2015 - We'll Do It Live

A new series where we take a look back at some of the top TV industry trends in 2015 and look ahead to what 2016 has in store.

Previously: Play It Fast and Tall

We’ll do it live

Early in the year a live streaming app called Meerkat became the darling of SXSW and showed all the signs of becoming the next big thing. Soon after, Twitter finished their acquisition of another live streaming app called Periscope. Periscope went on to become the more popular platform and also earn the title of Apple’s Best App of 2015.

But why did live streaming suddenly take off like a rocket? It’s already been around for a long long time (remember Justin.tv?). What happened was a perfect storm of better mobile carrier data plans, advances in mobile phone camera technology, advances in mobile video processing and mature social channels to broadcast to. All these things combined to made it possible for anyone to become a broadcaster.

What followed was a lot of experimentation and fast learning by both platforms and their users. Things got a bit messy with broadcasters over copyright when people live streamed their TV during the $90 pay-per-view Pacquaio vs Mayweather fight. People got genuinely shocked what they saw on live streams of events like the bombing in Bangkok; suddenly there was no broadcast veil or filter over the horrifying realities of real disasters.

Periscope became a powerful tool for current affairs and citizen journalism. Forward-thinking journalists embraced it as a way to give added layers of context and depth to complex issues; a great example was The Guardian journalist Paul Lewis’ on-the-street coverage of the Baltimore riots back in April.

In 2016 we’d like to see more from Periscope to improve discoverability and to encourage creators to create more content. Right now, Periscope feels very much like a tool for live news coverage and behind-the-curtain footage. We go to Periscope after we hear stories elsewhere or see them trending on Twitter. We don’t go to Periscope first to see what’s happening in the world.

We’re also very excited to see how live streaming apps like Periscope and Meerkat get used as campaigning heats up for the 2016 U.S Presidential Elections.

Recommended Reading

What happened when the aftermath of the Bangkok bomb blast was streamed live on Periscope

Pete Brown, Eyewitness Media Hub

What do Periscope and Meerkat mean for broadcasting copyright?

Samuel Gibbs, Julia Powles and Sam Thielman,  The Guardian

How Meerkat is Going to Change the 2016 Election for Every Campaign, Reporter and Voter

Dan Pfeiffer, Backchannel

Live from New York Fashion Week

Lisa Byrne, Medium

Up Next: Virtual Insanity

Read the full series on Rerun, our weekly roundup of the news and commentary you can’t afford to miss in the areas of TV, video and digital storytelling.