The impact of COVID-19 changes the social landscape of daily life in many ways. Attendance at live events is one of the most obvious casualties. Those local enough to attend in person choose to avoid the risks of a crowded place. For the international attendee, it’s simply out of the question. But luckily, affordable solutions now exist to produce and broadcast content with the same professional impact as traditional television shows. Also, the location of your live hosts, speakers, and guests is not an issue any longer. The solution lies with the co-ordination, production, and mixing of remote multi-source video.

Remote Multi-Source Video Mixing

Through the integration and mixing of remote multi-source video, social media and live streaming, we see a paradigm shift in the way we communicate and engage with our target audience. Indeed, over the last few years, organizations have approached us for assistance in designing live stream studios or broadcast infrastructure which they intend to operate by themselves. But there is a lot to learn about cameras, lighting, audio and streaming technology. Furthermore, it takes an experienced team to produce a multi-camera live stream at an event venue. Fortunately, Absolute Live Productions has been on the cutting edge of live stream production since 2009. Consequently, we have mastered the logistics of building a studio on location in a matter of hours with the necessary network connectivity. We understand live event staging and audiovisual technology. Also, we are videographers, audio engineers, jib operators, technical directors, writers, and producers. 

Travel restrictions and social distancing practices make it difficult for people to attend a single location. However, a live video mixer, like the NewTek TriCaster, can integrate multiple sources. This can include other live streams and studio-grade Skype calls. This mix can then be streamed to video-sharing platforms, such as IGTV, YouTube or Facebook. As a result, your hosts, guests and keynote speakers can be situated remotely, but actively involved. Audience participation doesn’t need to suffer either. Your host can respond to viewer comments in real-time with a producer talkback (IFB) audio mix.

Solutions

Our remote multi-source video solutions can be implemented in several ways using a variety of technology devices.  While there are degrees of production complexity and cost, this means your live host, guests, or keynote speakers can be located anywhere in the world. For example, the remote talent can be in their own home using a personal laptop with Skype. Alternatively, the remote guest can broadcast a public or private stream of their own. Both can be incorporated in the stream full-frame or as a layer in a composite image of several sources. Also, in line with social distancing practices, guests and talent can attend one of our partner live shot studios to participate. For location reports, we can send out a portable cellular bonding system and video package.  ALP recommends bonded cellular technology over satellite to reduce the cost and still deliver a perfect high-resolution live stream. 

If your plan is for a public event or conference, a paywall will allow pre-ticketed participants access to watch the event live through a content delivery platform (CDN). You don’t have to sacrifice all the quality of a live event because you can stream 4K video with pristine audio. Putting monetization to one side, brands and corporations already committed to an event (e.g. a trade show booth) may benefit from a professional live stream to make up for lost attendance and promotion opportunities. 

About Absolute Live Productions

ALP has streamed and produced satellite media tours from some very challenging locations such as a rainforest in Puerto Rico. Closer to home, we have live-streamed from the floor at the CES show in Las Vegas for Digital Trends; for Entertainment Tonight at Drag Con; from a downtown LA rooftop for Electronic Arts at E3; an Alexa-powered escape room at Comic-Con NY for Amazon; and an SMT for General Electric at CES. 

In conclusion, live streaming and remote live host / remote keynote presentations can solve many event requirements. For more information, call Dave Rosen at: