Going live with Media Studio

Producer in Media Studio allows live video content creators to easily create high-quality broadcasts from external sources including streaming software, hardware encoders, and other professional studio applications.

These broadcasts are viewable from Twitter on iOS and Android, and on desktop.

Past broadcasts are also viewable directly within the Producer application. For details on monetizing broadcasts and analytics, visit the Monetization and Analytics tabs above. Or read Producer FAQs below.

1. Introduction

It’s important to understand some new terms in order to get the best out of your experience with Producer in Media Studio.

Video Sources: The means of ingesting live video via RTMP or HLS into Producer.

A source needs to be created before you are able to ingest video and broadcast live on Twitter. There is no limit to the number of sources that can be created, but we recommend reusing one or more sources in your account to simplify your broadcasting experience.

If you have previously created a source within Periscope Producer, you may see it within your Media Studio source list. (If you’re a SnappyTV user, think of the source as a Channel.)

Broadcast: The live video entity on Twitter.

Broadcasts are how most people on Twitter will be viewing your live video. Follow all instructions below on creating a source and pushing video to your source, in order to successfully go live to Twitter with your broadcast.

Don’t forget to ensure you are first viewing Producer by clicking on the Producer button within the top navigation bar.

How to create a broadcast (start later or scheduled):         

  1. Click on the Broadcasts tab and click Create broadcast.
  2. Enter the required fields:
    - Name
    - Category
    - Source
  3. Choose a selection under Audience:
    - Public or Private (see detailed information below)
  4. Choose Start later in order to go live at a later time:
    - Pick a Start date and time
    - Pick an End date and time
  5. Choose a selection under Recurring:
    - Does not repeat
    - Daily
    - Weekly (see detailed information below)
  6. Choose a Poster image to upload from your local computer.
    - Suggested format:
    - 16 x 9 aspect ratio
    - 1280 x 720 resolution
  7. Open Advanced settings to toggle the chat functionality (see detailed information below).
  8. Open Content restrictions to toggle replay and geo-restrictions (see detailed information below).
  9. Click Create broadcast to schedule your broadcast to start later.
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer start broadcast later
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer start broadcast later
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer start broadcast later
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer start broadcast later
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer start broadcast later
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer start broadcast later
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer start broadcast later
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer start broadcast later
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer start broadcast later
  1. Click on the Broadcasts tab and click Create broadcast.
  2. Enter the required fields:
    - Name
    - Category
    - Source
  3. Choose a selection under Audience:
    - Public or Private (see detailed information below)
  4. Choose Start later in order to go live at a later time:
    - Pick a Start date and time
    - Pick an End date and time
  5. Choose a selection under Recurring:
    - Does not repeat
    - Daily
    - Weekly (see detailed information below)
  6. Choose a Poster image to upload from your local computer.
    - Suggested format:
    - 16 x 9 aspect ratio
    - 1280 x 720 resolution
  7. Open Advanced settings to toggle the chat functionality (see detailed information below).
  8. Open Content restrictions to toggle replay and geo-restrictions (see detailed information below).
  9. Click Create broadcast to schedule your broadcast to start later.

Note: You may modify any of these settings within your scheduled broadcast before it goes live. Once a scheduled broadcast is live, you may also modify the end time. Just remember that the broadcast will end at this selected time.

Pro tip: Try setting the end time later than you expect the show to run to ensure you don’t miss any portion of the event.

 

Options within Audience:

  • Public - This broadcast can be Tweeted and viewed by people on Twitter

  • Private - This broadcast cannot be Tweeted and is only accessible within Media Studio for testing and clipping using LiveCut

Options within Recurring:

  • Does not repeat - Your broadcast will not repeat.

  • Daily - Your recurring broadcast will be scheduled to go live every day at the same time until the specified End dat (up to one year).

  • Weekly - Your recurring broadcast will be scheduled to go live at the same day and time each week until the specified End date (up to one year).

Options within Advanced Settings:

  • Show chat in full screen mode - Checking this option removes the ability for users to chat or send hearts during the live broadcast

Options within Content Restrictions to toggle any of these features:

  • Make broadcast replay unavailable - Checking this option makes the broadcast replay unavailable, or unviewable, once the live broadcast is over.

  • Geo-restrictions - Enable this feature to restrict the viewing of the broadcast to the countries you specify (can be enabled by either including or excluding a set of countries).

    • Include

    • Exclude

 

How to end a broadcast:     

  1. Click on the Broadcasts tab.
  2. Click on an existing broadcast.
  3. Scroll down to the bottom of the broadcast details window.
  4. Click the End button.
  5. Your broadcast will now become a replay on Twitter.
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer end broadcast
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer end broadcast
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer end broadcast
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer end broadcast
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer end broadcast
  1. Click on the Broadcasts tab.
  2. Click on an existing broadcast.
  3. Scroll down to the bottom of the broadcast details window.
  4. Click the End button.
  5. Your broadcast will now become a replay on Twitter.

2. Video sources

How to create and publish to an RTMP source:

  1. Click on the Sources tab.

  2. Click Create source.

  3. Enter the required fields:   

    - Source name

    - Source type: RTMP

    - Region (select the region that is closest to your stream origin location)

  4. Click Create.

  5. Now view your detailed RTMP information:

    - RTMP URL

    - RTMP stream key

    Note: Keep this information private as anyone with this key can stream to this source.

  6. Update your hardware or software encoder to publish video to your source using the RTMP URL and stream key as outlined in Step 5.

  7. To test your video, follow the ‘How to create a broadcast’ instructions below.

Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer RTMP video source
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer RTMP video source
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer RTMP video source
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer RTMP video source
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer RTMP video source
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer RTMP video source
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer RTMP video source

  1. Click on the Sources tab.

  2. Click Create source.

  3. Enter the required fields:   

    - Source name

    - Source type: RTMP

    - Region (select the region that is closest to your stream origin location)

  4. Click Create.

  5. Now view your detailed RTMP information:

    - RTMP URL

    - RTMP stream key

    Note: Keep this information private as anyone with this key can stream to this source.

  6. Update your hardware or software encoder to publish video to your source using the RTMP URL and stream key as outlined in Step 5.

  7. To test your video, follow the ‘How to create a broadcast’ instructions below.

Note: Sources that were created in Periscope and Media Studio will appear here. Scheduled broadcasts must contain a source created in Media Studio.

In order to have the best experience using Producer, use these recommended stream specifications.

How to create and publish to an HLS source:

  1. Click on the Sources tab.

  2. Click Create source.

  3. Enter the required fields:

    1. Source name

    2. Source type: HLS

    3. HLS pull URL

    4. Region (select the region that is closest to your stream origin location)

  4. Click Create.

  5. To test your video, follow the ‘How to create a broadcast’ instructions below.

Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer HLS video source
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer HLS video source
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer HLS video source
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer HLS video source
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer HLS video source

  1. Click on the Sources tab.

  2. Click Create source.

  3. Enter the required fields:

    • Source name

    • Source type: HLS

    • HLS pull URL

    • Region (select the region that is closest to your stream origin location)

  4. Click Create.

  5. To test your video, follow the ‘How to create a broadcast’ instructions below.

HLS requirements and specifications can be found here.

Note: In order to have the best experience using Producer, use these recommended stream specifications.

3. Broadcasts

How to create a broadcast (start immediately):

  1. First, begin pushing a video via your hardware or software encoder to your source.
  2. Click on the Broadcasts tab
  3. Click Create broadcast.
  4. Enter the required fields:
    • Name
    • Category
    • Source
  5. Choose a selection under Audience:
    • Public or Private (see detailed information below)
  6. Choose Start immediately in order to go live right now.
  7. Open Advanced settings to toggle the chat functionality (see detailed information below).
  8. Open Content restrictions to toggle replay and geo-restrictions (see detailed information below).
  9. View the player at the top of the window to see a live preview of the video being sent to your source.
  10. Click Create broadcast to immediately go live on Twitter.
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer start broadcast
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer start broadcast
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer start broadcast
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer start broadcast
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer start broadcast
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer start broadcast
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer start broadcast
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer start broadcast
Laptop screen of Media Studio Producer start broadcast

  1. First, begin pushing a video via your hardware or software encoder to your source.

  2. Click on the Broadcasts tab.

  3. Click Create broadcast.

  4. Enter the required fields:

    - Name

    - Category

    - Source

  5. Choose a selection under Audience:

    - Public or Private (see detailed information below)

  6. Choose Start immediately in order to go live right now.

  7. Open Advanced settings to toggle the chat functionality (see detailed information below).

  8. Open Content restrictions to toggle replay and geo-restrictions (see detailed information below).

  9. View the player at the top of the window to see a live preview of the video being sent to your source.

  10. Click Create broadcast to immediately go live on Twitter.

 

4. Live Video Specifications

RTMP

Video codec: H.264/AVC
Video bitrate:

  • 9Mbps (reccomended)
  • 12Mbps (maximum)

Audio codec: AAC-LC
Audio bitrate: 128kbps (maximum)

Frame rate

  • 30 fps (recommended)
  • 60 fps (maximum)

Wirecast:

  • 24 fbs = Keyframe interval of 72 frames
  • 30 fbs = Keyframe interval of 90 frames
  • 50 fbs = Keyframe interval of 150 frames
  • 60 fbs = Keyframe interval of 180 frames

Commonly used software & hardware encoders are:

HLS requirements and specifications can be found here.

 

Producer FAQs

Producer: Sources

Sources are the method of ingesting live video via RTMP into Producer in Media Studio. A source needs to be created before you are able to ingest video and broadcast live on Twitter. There is no limit on the amount of sources that can be created, but we recommend reusing one or more sources in your account to simplify your experience.

Yes, as long as your broadcasts occur at different times. We do recommend reusing sources, but if you have multiple broadcasts that need to occur at the same time, it will be necessary to create additional sources.

No, it is not possible to reuse these existing streams. There must be a separate stream published to a source in Media Studio in order for us to properly ingest the video content. There are third-party services that can “split” one stream in order to send it to multiple RTMP points across different platforms. These services can be used to publish live video to Producer in Media Studio.

This list is not exhaustive and could change at any time: OBS, Wirecast, Teradek, Elemental, Switchboard Live, LiveStream, FFMpeg, Tricaster, Telescope, LiveU, vMix, Vidpresso, Restream.io.

HLS refers to HTTP Live Streaming, a media streaming protocol for delivering media over the internet. It is a popular format leveraged by hundreds of media companies to deliver live streams, particularly for mobile consumption.

The HLS URL must end with an .m3u8 or .m3u extension. Video and audio specifications are the same as RTMP. For full details about our recommended specs, please see Twitter Help page.

At this time we cannot ingest HLS streams with AES encryption, though we do support URLs with long-lived tokens (i.e. 30 days or longer).

Yes, in the Source details window you will see a list of IP addresses you will need to manually input into your encoder, which will allow Twitter to ingest your restricted stream.

Choose whichever region is closest to the stream origin location.

No, you must provide a stream of your own, for which you must have the proper rights, even if you do not plan on publicly streaming the content on Twitter.

You can set up a Source with a stream that has advertising, but you must not make public broadcasts with these streams. You are welcome to ingest the stream privately in order to create clips via LiveCut, but any clips shared to Twitter must not have advertising shown in the content of the video. If you wish to monetize your content, please reach out to your Twitter account manager for more information on our monetization programs.

No, please use whichever type of stream is available to you. All broadcast functionality in Media Studio is the same, regardless of what type of stream ingestion you are using.

No, you cannot make any modifications to a Source except for the Source name. If an HLS URL changes, or if you need to modify the region/location of the Source, you must create a new Source. As there are no restrictions to how many Sources you can have in Media Studio, you are welcome to either keep or delete the original Source.

No, at this time we only allow HLS streams to be inputted for HLS Sources. You are not able to utilize ‘RTMP pull’.

No, it is not possible to ingest content broadcasted on other websites. You must provide either an HLS URL, or push video via RTMP directly to Twitter. If you wish to go live on multiple websites, including Twitter, at the same time, we recommend using a service like Restream or Switchboard.

No, HLS Sources are only available for users within Media Studio.

No, HLS Sources are only available for users within Media Studio.

Producer: Broadcasts

 

Broadcasts are the method of going live with a stream on Twitter. Broadcasts are how most people on Twitter will be experiencing your live video.

Broadcasts scheduled to Start later are restricted to a six (6) hour maximum duration. Broadcasts that Start immediately do not have a maximum duration.

We have set the maximum date that can be scheduled in advance at one-year in the future.

Yes, you can edit the start and end times of a broadcast before it goes live. Once a broadcast is live, you can edit only the “Ends” field, either to end the broadcast early, or extend to a maximum of six hours.

Yes, you can Tweet any scheduled broadcast, as long as its audience setting is “Public”. The Tweet for a scheduled broadcast will contain the image you uploaded during broadcast creation. Include information about the scheduled date and time within your Tweet text to ensure users tune-in at the right time.

Public broadcasts can be viewed by anyone on Twitter or Periscope (unless the broadcast is geo-restricted). Private broadcasts are only viewable by the user logged into Media Studio, as its primary use is to be used for broadcasts that should not be public, but will be used to create clips using LiveCut.

Recurring broadcasts take the settings of a scheduled broadcast and set up those conditions to repeat on a daily or weekly interval for up to one calendar year. Recurring scheduled broadcasts will each appear as individual items within your Scheduled Broadcasts list and will stream the content coming through on the associated source at the scheduled time.

Simply click into an upcoming recurring scheduled broadcast in the Scheduled Broadcasts list and make adjustments to any of the fields as needed. Once you click on ‘Save’, choose whether you would like to apply the change to the one broadcast edited or to all future broadcasts within the recurrence.

Once you create a recurring scheduled broadcast, you cannot extend the end date further. However you can delete broadcasts after a point in time of your choosing and apply that change to all of the following recurring broadcasts after the date you selected.

Recurring scheduled broadcasts can be scheduled out over the course of one calendar year. Once created, they cannot be extended. If you need to continue a recurring scheduled broadcast after the 1-year maximum, you will need to create a new recurring scheduled broadcast.

This means your broadcast was not able to be created because of a time and source conflict. Within the warning window, you will see a list of the title(s) and date(s) of any upcoming scheduled broadcasts that overlap in time or source with the ones you are attempting to create. You can either edit the broadcast(s) which conflict, or use a different source for the new recurring broadcasts you are scheduling.

No, it is not possible to Tweet a private broadcast, as it is only visible within Media Studio.

Yes, when a broadcast goes live, it is discoverable on Periscope if you have associated your Periscope account with your Twitter username.

Twitter followers will only get notified of new broadcasts if there has been a Tweet created with the broadcast via Producer in Media Studio. At that point, we will also send a push notification to those Twitter followers that have specified a desire to be alerted when your account has a live broadcast.

Yes, Tweets containing a broadcast can be monetized on Twitter by associating it to a sponsorship program via Producer in Media Studio. When creating a Tweet, there will be a dropdown to select the desired program that has been linked to your username by a Twitter account manager.

At this time, we are testing monetization of broadcasts via the In-Stream Video Ads program. Please reach out to your Twitter account manager for more information.

Once a broadcast is ended, it turns into a video-on-demand replay video that is accessible from Twitter or Periscope. Any Tweets that had been created during (or after) the broadcast was live will automatically show the replay and start users at the beginning of the video.

Enabling content restrictions on a broadcast allows the viewing of the broadcast to be limited to the countries specified upon creation of the broadcast. These settings apply to the stream while live and as a replay, and is set by either Including a list of countries allowed to view, or Excluding a list of countries not allowed to view the stream.

Yes, open a previously live broadcast to view analytics. Please note you will be able to see complete data for live viewership two to three hours after your broadcast ends.

There is a date filter functionality on the top-right of the broadcast list. Use this to specify a desired date range during which broadcasts were created.

This box can be checked at any time. It will prevent replays of a broadcast from being shown both on Twitter and on Periscope. If this box is checked before or during a live broadcast, players will show a gray warning message upon the ending of the broadcast.

Yes, it is possible to delete a broadcast via the broadcast list. All existing Tweets that include the broadcast will now show error messages upon playback attempt. We recommend deleting all affected Tweets.