Filming, editing and streaming live interviews is a breeze for The Streaming Guys. Photo: The Streaming Guys.
Live streaming on platforms such as Youtube, Twitch and Facebook is the latest way for consumers from around the world to watch sporting events, meetings, news conferences, music festivals, and even Australia’s first robotic knee replacement.
Ten years ago, creating a professional live stream or webcast was very costly, but the latest technology has made the service more accessible and affordable for small businesses and community organisations.
It’s no longer just large corporations and government bodies that are going live on our screens. According to Wagga-based production company, The Streaming Guys, anyone can jump in front of the camera and connect with their online audience.
The Streaming Guys director Josh Harper says live video streaming is accessible and more affordable than ever.
A two-hour production, that would have cost $30,000 and required a van with a satellite dish a decade ago, can now be carried out by a team of professionals with just a camera bag for about $2500.
“Webcasting and streaming technology has come such a long way, that everybody and anybody can live stream their events,” he said.
“You can go it alone with a camera, or even a phone, but why would you when you can have an experienced crew take care of everything for you.”
While the public’s appetite for live streaming ramped up during the pandemic, Josh says it has been growing steadily since around 2010 when they were one of the first companies in the country to offer a full live production service.
One of their biggest audiences was captured at the 2017 Summernats in Canberra when their live broadcast of a burn-out competition attracted an incredible four million simultaneous viewers from around the world.
During lockdowns live videos became mainstream, as councils, schools and corporations live streamed their meetings, graduation ceremonies and awards nights into homes around the country. Josh says, during this time, The Streaming Guys played an integral role in ensuring people could keep in touch and be involved no matter where they were located.
“We were streaming anything and everything, from births to funerals and everything in between,” he said.
He says live videos, across a variety of platforms, is now the preferred way for people to obtain information, whether it’s an industry seminar, sporting match or news broadcast.
“No matter what you’re interested in, there will be on-demand videos or live streaming available. There’s a real hunger for live content,” Josh said.
Closed streaming services also became essential during lockdowns, with the ‘guys’ filming Australia’s first robotic knee transplant, that was performed in Bendigo remotely by a surgeon based in France.
“We streamed the operation live to doctors around the world so they could watch the procedure. It was pretty amazing,” Josh said.
Mark Rodgers from The Whole Picture, a Sydney-based provider of complete turnkey solutions for press junkets and electronic press kits, says The Streaming Guys came to their rescue during the pandemic when movie directors and actors couldn’t get into the country.
“Once the borders closed, we had to come up with a way to interview our talent remotely and create packages for distribution to media outlets around the world, and The Streaming Guys were able to jump straight in and arrange everything,” Mark said.
“They’re world-class, and what they’re doing is up there with our peers in the US, UK and Europe. They’re reliable and experts at what they do.”
The Whole Picture also arranges live Q and A’s with movie stars and directors which are streamed simultaneously into cinemas following the launch of blockbuster movies.
Previously, the actors might have gone along to a series of film openings around the country for opening night but, thanks to The Streaming Guys, they can now sit at their homes in London, LA or Paris and speak directly to audiences in 100 Australian cinemas at the same time.
As well as offering streaming packages, The Streaming Guys sell a range of video and editing equipment for those brave enough to try their hand at streaming.
However, Josh says there’s a lot that can go wrong if businesses or organisations try to go it alone and, because it’s live, there’s no second chance.
If you have a meeting, product launch or function coming up, chat to The Streaming Guys and open the door to endless possibilities by live streaming your event across multiple platforms, with 100 per cent reliability.
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