They're also killing Facebook Live, just for good measure. As part of the ongoing updates Google's making to YouTube, the popular video platform is now going live, literally. YouTube Connect is rumored to be a live streaming app meant to rival Facebook Live and Periscope, the popular app by Twitter.As VentureBeat reports, Google is keeping this one under wraps for the moment, but apparently they are working on a YouTube feature that will allow users to stream video live at any time, much like Periscope does right now.
The trend right now is for video platforms to go live, so YouTube Connect doesn't appear to be completely out of thin air. Recently, after Twitch.tv experienced a meteoric rise in popularity, all the major players woke up to the realization that people want to see their favorite media creators in real time and they're willing to spend money to do it. As a result, YouTube Gaming started to offer similar services, although it's yet to reach similar levels of popularity.So the natural progression has been to expand these services outside of the gaming world, and YouTube Connect is thought to be the platform to take Google's video platform to a new level.Google is building YouTube Connect, a livestreaming app to take on Periscope https://t.co/AmGahEm2L4 via @VentureBeat
— Attention (@attention) March 25, 2016
Manuel Bronestein, the head of product for consumers at YouTube, has been quoted by Wired as saying:YouTube is reportedly building a standalone live-streaming app similar to Periscope: https://t.co/dsnC1QqGBx pic.twitter.com/Th69AxPkzU
— Jean Robinson (@VideoGirl_Jean) March 25, 2016
Live streaming isn’t lost on Facebook CEO either. Zuckerberg has been “obsessed” with making live streaming a number one priority for the company. Facebook Live is now available in more than thirty countries, with many more on the way. Unlike Periscope or Youtube Connect, Facebook Live will be integrated with current services and not a standalone app, allowing users to follow the live broadcasts of their current list of friends and connections.“Broadly speaking, we think about YouTube being synonymous with video. Live has alway been a part of video, and it’s actually always a very exciting part!”
YouTube is no stranger to live streaming either, as we've been able to watch live streams on Google's platform for a while now.YouTube's Reportedly Building a #Periscope Alternative Called Connect via @Gizmodo https://t.co/eEtXdkY4iD pic.twitter.com/NePQhBWcW4
— FATUnicorn (@wearefu) March 25, 2016