Facebook will make game livestreaming easier with its integration of Streamlabs OBS livestreaming software, which enables users to stream their favorite games through Facebook.
Streaming video games using other broadcasting software can be a pretty intimidating and technical experience, especially for new streamers. The goal of the integration is to make the streaming experience on Streamlabs OBS as smooth and seamless as possible. That way, streamers can turn their passion into a business, and a full Facebook Gaming integration is a crucial step in helping more creators earn a living from livestreaming. It already works on platforms like Twitch, Mixer, and YouTube.
Streams said it saw a 91 percent increase in content creators using Streamlabs OBS on Facebook. This integration with Facebook Gaming will open the doors for many more to do it.
“The fact is, getting in started in livestreaming is not exactly easy for most people,” said Ali Moiz, CEO of Streamlabs, in an email. “The setup process can be a technical experience, and for many people the time it takes to get set up and grow an audience can be intimidating. This integration with Facebook Gaming is significant because it is lowering that barrier. Now people can download Streamlabs OBS, configure their settings in 60 seconds, and go live on Facebook Gaming in a matter of minutes. That’s unprecedented.”
Above: Ali Moiz is CEO of Streamlabs.
Image Credit: Dean Takahashi
He added, “It’s an exciting time for Facebook Gaming. They have been working hard recently to increase viewer engagement and attract more streamers to the platform, and it’s working. People are starting to realize Facebook Gaming can be a lucrative platform to build their brand while it’s still relatively new. We are excited to help them build on that and continue their success by making live streaming for their growing user base more accessible than anything ever before.”
The old process was laborious, as a streamer had to go to Facebook.com/live/create, click on “Create Live Stream,” and then go through about eight more steps. Now someone goes to Streamlabs OBS, logging in via Facebook. They click “Go Live,” add a game category, title, description, and select a page. Then they just confirm and go live.
“We’re always looking for new ways to make live streaming easier and more rewarding for our growing community of gaming creators,” said Nick Miller, product manager at Facebook Gaming, in a statement. “The new Streamlabs OBS integration makes it faster than ever for Facebook Gaming creators to stream. We’ll continue to work with partners like Streamlabs so gaming creators can focus on what’s most important — making awesome content, connecting with their fans and earning money from their work.”
The Facebook Gaming Integration within SLOBS includes:
- Embedded Chat: This widget adds an overlay to a stream to ensure that chat interactions are visible to everyone no matter where or when past streams are being played.
- Auto-fill Stream Information: This feature will pull and prefill stream info (title, description, etc) from either a scheduled stream or the last stream.
- Automated Notification: Because Facebook allows the user to stream up to four hours per session, with a warning message when the user is approaching the stream limit.
- Stream Schedule: When a user schedules a live video, an announcement post will be published to News Feed letting fans on Facebook know that the broadcast is coming.
And in the future, a new feature coming is Facebook-specific Alert Support. So whenever you receive a like, share or follow you’ll be notified on stream. Currently, only Facebook Pages, not personal profiles, are supported for live streaming using Streamlabs OBS. An automatic notification within Streamlabs OBS will tell users to set up a page for streaming if they don’t already have one.
Source: VentureBeat
