Guide to live streaming an event using FastPix

In a world where real-time engagement is key, live streaming has emerged as a powerful medium for connecting with audiences instantly and authentically. For developers and content creators, choosing the right tools to deliver a flawless live stream is crucial. FastPix offers an all-in-one solution that simplifies the process, from setup to broadcast, making it the ideal choice for your event's live stream. This guide will walk you through how to effortlessly create and manage a live stream using the FastPix Dashboard and Livestream API, ensuring your event reaches your audience with the quality and reliability that FastPix can provide.

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Popularity of live streaming: 2023-2024 Insights

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Live streaming has become an essential tool for connecting with audiences in real-time, whether for worship services, corporate events, or educational purposes. Here’s a snapshot of the latest trends and statistics from 2023-2024:

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Live streaming in churches and houses of worship

• ‍Widespread adoption: According to the 2024 report by Church Growth Magazine, approximately 68% of churches now regularly live stream their services, up from 55% in 2022. This growth reflects a commitment to reaching congregants who are unable to attend in person.

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• Enhanced engagement: A survey by Faith Communities Today reveals that churches incorporating live streaming see a 30% increase in online engagement and a 20% boost in overall attendance. This includes both in-person and virtual participants, highlighting the effectiveness of live streaming in maintaining and expanding congregation reach.

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Corporate and educational events

• Corporate sector: A 2023 report by Eventbrite shows that 75% of companies have embraced live streaming for corporate events such as conferences, webinars, and product launches. This represents a 15% increase from 2022, indicating a shift towards hybrid event formats that combine in-person and virtual elements.
  
• ‍Educational institutions: The National Education Association reports that 55% of educational institutions now use live streaming for lectures, workshops, and special events. This is up from 45% in 2022, reflecting the growing role of live streaming in remote and hybrid learning environments.
  

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These insights highlight the expanding role of live streaming in connecting people and delivering content across different contexts. As technology continues to advance, live streaming will likely remain a key tool for engagement and outreach in the coming years.

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Stream your live event using FastPix

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FastPix is a user-friendly platform for live event streaming, combining an intuitive dashboard with robust API capabilities. It handles the complexities of video encoding, distribution, and multi-platform streaming, offering scalability, reliability, and flexibility.

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Prepare your streaming environment before creating a livestream

Before diving into the FastPix platform, ensure you have the right equipment and environment: ‍

• ‍Streaming equipment: Invest in quality cameras and microphones. A multi-camera setup can enhance the viewer experience by providing different angles. ‍
• Internet connection: A stable and fast connection is crucial. Aim for an upload speed of at least 5 Mbps for 1080p streaming. ‍
• Streaming software: Use tools like OBS Studio to manage your stream, overlay graphics, and switch between camera angles.

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Create a livestream using the FastPix dashboard

1. If you're new to FastPix, begin by signing up for an account at https://dashboard.fastpix.io. During the sign-up process, you'll go through a few steps, including filling out your details on the "Add Details" page. You'll then be prompted to provide additional information, which you can either complete or skip. After this, you'll be redirected to the main dashboard, where FastPix will welcome you.
2. On the main interface, hover over the left-hand menu to explore various options.
3. Select "Live" to navigate to the Live page.

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            4. To create a new live stream, click on the "Create live stream" button.

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Note: Initially, you'll only be able to create test streams, which are limited to 5 minutes of streaming time, and each organization can create up to 30 test streams.

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Upgrading to the Pro Plan

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To upgrade:

1. Go to your account settings, located in the bottom left corner of the screen.
2. Navigate to the "Billing and Payment" section. This will take you to a page where you can select the "Upgrade" option.
3. Enter your payment details and other required information. Once your card is added, your Pro plan will be activated, giving you complete access to FastPix's features.  
   Note: FastPix offers usage-based pricing. See pricing in detail

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What else do you get with FastPix live streaming?

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Now that you've upgraded to the Pro plan, let’s dive into how FastPix livestreaming works.

We’ve already discussed the process of creating a livestream. Now, let’s create a livestream by understanding the functionality of each parameter in the image below:

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playbackSettings

• accessPolicy: This parameter determines whether your livestream will be private or public.
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InputMediaSettings

• maxResolution: Defines the maximum resolution at which your stream will be broadcast. ‍
• reconnectWindow: Specifies the time window for reconnection if the network fails, before the stream is declared as ended. ‍
• mediaPolicy: Controls whether the recording of the livestream (LIVE-to-VOD) stored under a mediaId should be private or public. ‍
• metadata: This parameter allows you to add additional information about the stream, which can be anything relevant to your needs.

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NOTE: With the Pro plan, you can stream for up to 12 hours and have no limit on the number of livestreams you create. In case you have much higher requirements, such as extended streaming durations or additional features, you may consider upgrading to the Enterprise plan, which offers advanced options and dedicated support to meet extensive needs. For more details on the Enterprise plan and its benefits, please visit our pricing page or contact our team for personalized assistance.

Next, click on "Run Request" to create your livestream. To view your stream, click on "View Stream," which will take you to the Live Stream Details page.

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Now that, this creates a livestream entity, you can instantly go-live by following the steps below:

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Step 1: Open OBS and go to Settings > Stream.

Step 2: Choose "Custom" as the service option and enter FastPix’s server URL: rtmps://live.ibee.ai:443/live.

Step 3: Copy the Stream Key from the Live Stream Details page and paste it into the Stream Key field in OBS.

Step 4: Connect your DSLR to OBS as a webcam. You'll need a video capture card—connect the capture card to your system and DSLR. It is not mandatory to use only DSLR, you can use any other source or camera as web cam based on your requirements.

Step 5: In OBS, create a scene "Your Live Event Name."

Step 6: Add sources to your scene, such as your video capture device and microphone.

Step 7: Optimize your OBS settings by adjusting the output and video settings based on your requirements.

Now that your OBS setup is complete, you can start streaming.

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You can share the stream with anyone

To share your stream, use the stream URL available on the Live Stream Details page. Simply insert the playback ID into the stream URL, and it will play in any HLS player.

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Now, how to make the live stream more secure?

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When it comes to streaming encrypted video content, two common approaches are using the SRT (Secure Reliable Transport) protocol or setting an access policy as private. Both methods aim to secure the stream, but they do so in different ways.

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1. Using SRT for encrypted streaming

SRT is a transport protocol specifically designed for streaming high-quality, real-time video over unreliable networks. One of its key features is built-in encryption, which ensures that the video stream is secure from the moment it leaves the source until it reaches the destination.

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2. Using access policy as private

Another way to secure a livestream is by setting the access policy to private. This approach focuses on controlling who can access the stream rather than encrypting the stream itself.

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Which is better?

Using SRT is particularly advantageous for live streams where security, low latency, and reliability are crucial. The encryption provided by SRT ensures that unauthorized users cannot access the content, protecting it from piracy or tampering.

On the other hand, setting an access policy as private controls who can access the stream rather than encrypting the stream itself. While the stream may not be encrypted during transmission, access to it is tightly controlled, relying on secure authentication mechanisms to prevent unauthorized users from viewing the content.

Each method has its strengths: SRT offers robust encryption during transmission, while a private access policy provides strong access control, ensuring that only authorized users can view the stream.

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Using APIs to build live stream in your product

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To create a livestream using the FastPix API, follow these steps:

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Step 1: Generate basic authentication credentials

Before making API calls, you'll need to generate Basic Authentication credentials from the FastPix dashboard. Here’s how you can do that:

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Log in to the FastPix dashboard:

• Once logged in, navigate to the left sidebar of the dashboard.
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Access organizational settings:

• Hover over the left side of the screen until you find the “Org Settings” option.
• Click on “Org Settings,” and you'll see the “Access Tokens” option.
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Generate an access token:

• Click on “Access Tokens,” and you’ll be redirected to the token management page.
  
• In the top right corner of the page, click on “Generate New Token.”
• Fill in the required details:
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  • ‍Access token name: Provide a recognizable name for your token.
  • ‍Workspace type: Select the appropriate workspace type for your use case.
  • ‍Permissions: Set the necessary permissions for the token.
  • After filling in these details, click on “Generate Access Token.”

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Retrieve your credentials:

• Upon generating the token, you'll be provided with an Access Token ID and a Secret Key.
• These two values will serve as the username (Access Token ID) and password (Secret Key) for Basic Authentication in API requests.

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Step 2: Using Postman to test the API

Before diving into livestream creation, let’s explore how to use Postman, a popular API testing tool. If you're not using Postman, you can also utilize alternatives like Hoppscotch, among others.
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Create a workspace:

• Open Postman and create a new workspace. Workspaces help you organize your projects.
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Create a collection:

• Within your workspace, create a new collection. Collections allow you to group related API requests.
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Set up an HTTP request:

• Inside your collection, create a new HTTP request. You’ll configure this request with the necessary details, such as the endpoint URL, method (e.g., POST), headers, and body parameters.

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After setting up your Basic Authentication credentials and familiarizing yourself with Postman, you can now proceed to create a livestream via the FastPix API.

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1. Access the Live Streaming API:

• Visit the FastPix API Documentation.
• Navigate to the Live Streaming API section.
• Select the Create a new stream endpoint.
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This section provides you with all the necessary details and parameters needed to create a livestream.

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2. Understand the curl Command:

The documentation provides an example curl command to create a new stream. Let’s break it down:

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3. Translate to Postman:

Now, let’s configure this in Postman:

1. Set up the request:
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   • ‍Method: POST ‍
   • URL: https://v1.fastpix.io/streams
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2. Add headers:
   • ‍Authorization:
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     • ‍Basic auth: The -user {username}: {password} flag is used to pass your authentication credentials. Replace {username} with your Access Token ID and {password} with your Secret Key, both of which were generated from the FastPix dashboard.‍
     • Content-type: The -H 'Content-Type: application/json' header indicates that the data you’re sending is in JSON format.
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3. Define the request body:
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   • Choose Raw as the body type and set it to JSON.
   • Paste the following JSON body and customize it according to your needs:

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4. Send the request:
   • After configuring everything, click the Send button in Postman.

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Review the response:

Once you send the request, the FastPix API will respond with details about your newly created livestream.

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Now, you can follow the same steps to start streaming a livestream event as we did when creating one through the dashboard.

With FastPix APIs, you can efficiently manage your live streams with the following actions:

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• (POST) Create a New Stream
• (GET) Get All Live Streams
• (GET) Get Stream by ID
• (DELETE) Delete a Stream
• (PATCH) Update a Stream
• (POST) Create a Playback ID
• (DELETE) Delete a Playback ID
• (GET) Get Stream's Playback ID
• (POST) Create a Simulcast
• (DELETE) Delete a Simulcast
• (GET) Get a Specific Simulcast of a Stream
• (PUT) Update a Specific Simulcast of a Stream

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To explore all the functionalities and detailed documentation of these APIs, click here.

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Some best practices for live streaming events

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Plan Ahead

Prepare a comprehensive plan for your event, covering all aspects from the streaming setup to the content flow. Ensuring that everything is well-organized in advance will help your livestream run smoothly.

Consider Your Audience

If you need to stream sensitive or important information to a select group of people, it’s advisable to use a private or SRT (Secure Reliable Transport) stream instead of a public one. This approach ensures that only the intended audience has access to the content.

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Final thoughts

Live streaming an event using the FastPix Dashboard and Video API is both straightforward and efficient. By following this guide, you can easily create a seamless streaming experience that engages audiences and delivers high-quality content. Whether you're streaming to a small, private group or a large public audience, having the right tools and thorough preparation makes all the difference in achieving a successful livestream.