RTMP Streaming Options

What is RTMP?

RTMP didn't mean anything, to anyone, only a few months ago - at least to event planners like us. Suddenly, everyone started talking about it! So what is it? RTMP (Real-Time Media Protocol) is actually a fairly old (and soon to be retired entirely) protocol for real-time media streaming over the internet (audio, video, and data). It's popular because it's ubiquitous, old, and widely supported, but more systems will better support protocols like HLS and WebRTC (what PheedLoop Meet is built on) in the near future. In this article though, we'll talk about RTMP only.

So if you're an event planner, and you're looking to stream sessions over RTMP, you'll want to be quite sure this is what you want because choosing RTMP streaming (versus things like our native Meet & Stream or integrations with platforms like Zoom, or pre-recorded content) comes with a lot more you need to do to make it work. RTMP itself doesn't do anything, it's just the carrier for your content. What you need in addition to an RTMP streaming service is something to actually stream into the RTMP ingest, a source. This is where the possibilities become endless.

Sources for RTMP Streamed Content

There's really no limit to what you can stream via RTMP. It's like asking what kind of car you can drive on the highway (if an RTMP streaming service is the highway in this analogy). The answer is pretty much any car, it just depends on what you want. Examples include:

• An AV team filming content at a venue, and streaming/processing it via software like OBS (Open Broadcast Software) or Wirecast
• You choosing to stream a session from Zoom (learn more) or WebEx (learn more), for example (different from our native integrations, as these are just streamed video, no interactivity)
• You using something like StreamYard or OBS (Open Broadcast Software) to create your own source with webcams, videos, presentations, effects, transitions, and more

RTMP doesn't limit you in any way, it's just the highway that delivers your content. That highway may have smaller or fewer lanes, tolls, or traffic which slow or speed things up and affect quality - analogous to characteristics of the RTMP streaming service you may choose where you'll need to make decisions about quality, latency, speed, and more.

Services Offering RTMP Streaming

RTMP streaming is generally extremely affordable, oftentimes even free! There are some very popular options out there for RTMP streaming, and while there are probably hundreds or thousands of possible streaming services you could choose from, we've selected a few which also offer embeddable players as well. Platforms that offer embeddable players are valuable because that makes things so much easier for you on the PheedLoop side (all you need to do is drop the embeddable player code into PheedLoop's Custom Stream Code setting for each session).

Essentially, all streaming services offer an RTMP URL and an RTMP key. Plug those into your software, embed the player in PheedLoop, and start streaming!

Pro Tip! Check out two amazing platforms called Restream and StreamYard, giving you the option to stream your content to dozens of social platforms at once (one of which can be your RTMP endpoint flowing to PheedLoop). They also allow you to customize the content you're streaming very easily.

Adding Your RTMP Stream to PheedLoop

If you're using PheedLoop's built-in RTMP system, then there's very little work required. Simply enable the backstage for a session, and select the Direct RTMP option in the backstage itself. You'll get the RTMP URL and RTMP key, and you're all set! More information here.

If you're using a third-party RTMP tool, copy and paste the embeddable code the service you choose offers into your session's Custom Stream Code field in PheedLoop. Ensure the stream is enabled for the session, and start experimenting!