Posted on: April 15, 2019 Posted by: James McQuiston Comments: 0

Live streaming has become hugely popular in the last few years, and Facebook has brought the technology to mass audiences. The social networking site which was founded by Mark Zuckerberg introduced the platform in 2017, and within a year nearly 2 billion people had watched Facebook Live broadcasts. The technology has permeated numerous industries and changed the way people view live events. Recently, live streaming has emerged as a way for bands to broadcast their concerts to mass audiences all over the world. Huge acts such as Red Hot Chili Peppers have already made use of the platform, and it could easily be the future of watching live shows.

Red Hot Chili Peppers and Other Major Bands Now Use Live Streaming

Being able to watch bands live from the comfort of your own home isn’t a new phenomenon. In fact, live concerts have been televised for over 50 years. The first live international satellite television production was broadcast on the 25th of June, 1967. Our World featured artists from various countries, including the Beatles and painter Pablo Picasso, each appearing in separate segments. After this special event, producers quickly realized that the same could be done for live concerts. Five years later in 1973, Aloha from Hawaii aired, and this is often considered to be the greatest concert in history. It was televised across the world in 40 European and Asian countries, and was watched by one and a half billion people. Since then, there have been thousands of live broadcasts of concerts. However, there are limitations such as television time slots and commercial breaks in the middle of sets.

Live streaming could be the new way for bands to get their live shows to mass audiences, and a number of well-known acts have already begun to use the platform. In March of 2019, Red Hot Chili Peppers – one of the biggest live acts in the world – played their first ever Egyptian concert at the Pyramids of Giza. The band which was founded in Los Angeles in 1983 made the event even more special by live streaming it. Fans were able to stream it from the band’s official website, and watch it without any interruptions, as if they were there in person. Other acts such as Calvin Harris, Jay Z, and Ciara have all live streamed their shows, and there are websites such as Livelist which act as hubs for fans to find the music they are looking for.

Live Streaming Has Already Permeated Other Sectors

In the past when bands have played live, the revenue generated has been limited by capacities of the arenas in which they were playing. In the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ 2016-17 The Getaway Tour, the band was playing to around 14,000 people at each venue and made $119.7 million from the entire tour. If they had live streamed the same tour, the potential money they could have made would have been considerably higher.

These figures highlight just how lucrative the use of live streaming can be, which is why the technology has permeated a number of other sectors as well. In fact, live streaming has existed in some industries for quite some time. It has been used in the online casino sector for over four years as a way to bring real games to players at home. Betway Casino has live links to roulette and blackjack games in which players can even interact with the dealer. The gaming industry has benefited massively from live streaming, with sites like Twitch now worth astonishing sums of money. In 2014, Amazon bought the site for $970 million, highlighting just how profitable Twitch is. The game streaming site has also helped bring more attention to the eSports scene. Video game competitions are often live streamed now, and the industry is projected to be worth $1.7 billion by 2022 according to Statista. With traditional sports such as football and baseball both available through live streams, it seems that the platform is only going to get bigger and better.

Live Streaming Makes Concerts More Accessible Than Ever

Live concerts are now even more accessible than ever, and there are few restrictions stopping fans from seeing their favorite bands. In the past there were obstacles such as TV time slots, but live streaming gets past these barriers. It allows fans to see the bands they like through official websites or social media accounts. This is already an exciting innovation, but it could be about to become even better in the years ahead.

Virtual reality could allow fans to feel as though they are actually there in the audience. The virtual and augmented market is also expected to boom around 2022, with a projected revenue of $192.7 billion. This figure suggests that the technology will be used for almost everything. Combining VR with live streaming could provide an immersive experience, and make the shows accessible to even more people, such as those with disabilities who may not normally be able to attend.

With bands like Red Hot Chili Peppers leading the way, and new technology such as VR coming in, live streaming concerts could be the future. Soon, people from all over the world will be able to feel as though they are watching their favorite bands live, no matter where they are performing.

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