Meerkat has launched a new real-time video feature called Cameo that allows users to invite friends on the mobile app to take over their live streams. The new feature could lead to an interesting opportunity for brands to work with celebrities and social influencers. For example, a company such as Red Bull could promote upcoming livestreams with their sponsored extreme-sports athletes. Fox, Hulu, MasterCard, Southwest Airlines and The Weather Channel are among those already signed up to use Cameo. Continue reading New Meerkat Feature Makes Real-Time Video More Interactive

Periscope both was and was not at Wimbledon this year. The tournament’s digital content team used Twitter’s live video broadcasting app to take fans on a Roger Federer-led walking tour of the facility. Federer also anchored Wimbledon’s Periscope feed of the matches at the All England Lawn Tennis Club. But Wimbledon simultaneously banned attendees from using the live-streaming app in the stands. Periscope CEO Kayvon Beykpour wasn’t fazed by the seemingly contradictory move. “Their motivation is preserving the sanctity of play,” he said. Continue reading Periscope Streams Wimbledon But Is Banned at Tournament

Sphericam 2 is a 4K spherical camera launched recently as a Kickstarter project with the intent of providing photographers, cinematographers and consumers with a means of easily capturing high-quality 360-degree video. The developers behind Sphericam see the camera is an ideal solution for producing content for VR hardware including Oculus Rift, Samsung Gear VR and Google Cardboard. The camera features six built-in 4K lenses and records 360-degree video at 60fps. With 23 days to go in the campaign, the project has already exceeded its $150,000 goal. Continue reading New 4K 360-Degree Camera is Designed for Virtual Reality

Periscope, Twitter’s new mobile live streaming app (and Meerkat competitor), is starting to draw the attention of advertisers and programmers. The app, which Twitter purchased this year for a reported $100 million, allows users to live stream content directly to and from their smartphones. The app was initially released only for iOS devices, but went live on Android phones this week. VH1 recently used the social tool to promote the wedding of two stars on “Love & Hip Hop” by providing users access to the ceremony’s red carpet arrival. Continue reading Now Live on Android, Periscope Part of New Social Strategies

For music fans that want to catch acts such as AC/DC, Drake, Interpol, Jack White and Vic Mensa perform at Coachella this weekend, much of the three-day festival will be streamed on YouTube. Three channels of performances, commentary and interactive profiles will be made available as well as a schedule feature that offers updates based on a user’s time zone and channel choice, and a virtual map feature that will include photos taken during the live event. Coachella’s YouTube channel is sponsored by T-Mobile. Continue reading Coachella to Live Stream Performances and More via YouTube

Last year’s selfie by Ellen DeGeneres during the live Oscar telecast set a new Twitter record and launched 3 million retweets. Not surprisingly, yesterday’s 87th Academy Awards had an impressive social presence, from ABC live-streaming its backstage show on Facebook to news organizations live-blogging on assorted social networks and Facebook launching its new real-time Trending Oscars experience. According to Twitter, the most tweeted-about nominees and performers included Lady Gaga, Patricia Arquette, Alejandro Iñárritu and John Legend. Continue reading Academy Awards Have Strong Presence on Twitter and Facebook

During the Gamescom conference in Germany this week, Sony announced that the Twitch videogame broadcasting community will be integrated into its PlayStation 4 game console when it launches this fall. In June, Microsoft announced that the live streaming venture for gamers would be available on its Xbox One, leading many to speculate that Twitch would not end up on the PS4. Twitch allows gamers to live stream, share and chat about their playing experiences. Continue reading Gamescom 2013: Twitch Live Streaming on Xbox One and PS4

At New York City Fashion Week, clothing company Belstaff streamed its show live in order to engage with a wider range of fans, but also to gauge the popularity of certain items and to predict which might be hits in stores for the summer. Fashion houses are less exclusive about their products and are now ready and willing to showcase items by giving a front-row seat to fans and customers via the Web. Continue reading NY Fashion Week Offers Front Row Seat Via Live Streams