Youtube Streaming Guide: Live Streaming on Youtube is a great way to monetize your gaming hobby. Millions of people watch the live game streaming on YouTube daily and this number is only growing. Today we are going to talk about how you can use youtube as a platform for live game streaming and earn some income too.
In youtube your google profile picture is taken as the default for the channel profile picture. So do note to change it after you have finalized your channel’s picture. Regarding the size of the picture it is the same as twitch profile picture size.
Here is a Guide:
- First Step- If you have opened a new youtube account then by default the live streaming option will be disabled for you. So to remove this restriction you will be needing to verify your account by using a mobile phone OTP-based method. Once this is done you have to enable live streaming via the channel features page. Then wait at least 24 hours and if all is good youtube will approve your account for live streaming.
- Second Step- Now that your account is allowed for live streaming on youtube, you must know the four ways in which you can start live streaming. Those are 1. Web Browser, mobile device, software encoder, hardware encoder. The first two options are free for anyone to use but for using encoders you will have to enter into an agreement with third-party vendors which may or may not be free. Also, remember that for live streaming from a mobile device you will be needing at least 50 subscribers to do so. The video bitrate for mobile based live streaming will be lower than other methods, so remember that while planning.
- Third Step- By now you must have a good idea of what pre-requirements you need to fulfill before starting a youtube live streaming channel. Now you must decide on what equipment and tools to use for live streaming. Here is more information on them:
- Web Browser: This is one of the most highly used mechanisms for live streaming on youtube. You can and must use a webcam for better traction in your live streams as people prefer to watch those streams. If you think your computer’s inbuilt camera is not that great then use a camcorder or DSLR. You can buy a USB capture card to capture video signals from your camera or DSLR and youtube can also recognize this external device.
After you are done setting up the camera, log into your youtube account and click on the create a video icon and then select ‘Go Live.’ That’s all, now you can either schedule a live stream or start instantly. Youtube will automatically create a video file of your live stream for future reference.
- Mobile Device: Once you have got 50 subscribers for your youtube channel you can start mobile live streaming, but remember youtube will throttle the number of viewers for your stream unless you have at least 1000 subscribers. To start live streaming open the Youtube app and press the plus icon at the center of the menu at the bottom and then grant all the permission that the app asks and voila! You’re set to live stream. By default, the videos of the live streaming done on mobile devices will be kept private.
- Streaming Software Encoders: There are a lot of streaming software encoders, some are free, some are paid. One of the most popular streaming software is Open Broadcaster Software (OBS) but you can use other software too. Use a good quality camera and connect it with your computer using a capture card. Simply install your favorite software streaming encoder and enter your Youtube channel’s link so that it knows where to feed the live stream. Also, the interface and mechanism of streaming differ from software to software so make sure that you read its guidebook carefully to know how to operate it.
- Hardware-Based Streaming Encoders: This is one of the most costly options for live streaming. So due to this only serious persons and those with a large base of subscribers use hardware-based streaming encoders. There are lots of advantages of using a hardware encoder for streaming rather than the other three methods. One of the biggest advantages that you will notice is the quality of the video stream will improve by a big margin. Another change you will notice is that your computer will consume fewer resources since the CPU is not stressed with the additional task of rendering the stream. Try to find a balanced hardware-based streaming encoder so that you strike a balance between need and desire.
Conclusion
Youtube streaming is a very big industry and you can be a part of it too if you give consistently good efforts. The choice of content also matters in cases like these. So first decide what topic you are going to stream on and then accordingly decide whether you want to stream using a browser or a mobile or encoders (software and hardware)