Why Auctions are Perfect for Live Streaming

At Tulix we help many businesses with their live streaming needs.  These customers include content owners who want to launch FAST Channels (Free Ad Supported TV), enterprise clients for IPTV and live events plus house of worship clients.  Increasingly we have seen an uptick in clients who want to stream live auctions.  Auctions make excellent content for online streaming.  Along with several advantages there are some technical challenges that come with auction streaming.  In this article we will highlight some of the advantages to streaming live auctions and some of the challenges for live streaming that must be addressed.  

 

Reasons to Live Stream Auctions

Attract more people

Video streaming platforms like Tulix’s can help organizations that are ether for profit or non profit attract more people to an online auction.  Afterall, when it comes to streaming the world is your audience.  There is no need to be in person and much larger virtual crowds can be gathered.  Leveraging video streaming services the size of an auction’s audience can be limitless. 

 

Promote online

When it comes to promoting an auction if it is streamed online, it can also be promoted online as well.  Social posts, email campaigns, key word campaigns can all be part of the promotion to drive people toward an auction.  Regular days and times can be set up to run recurring auctions.  People live digital lives in this day in age.  Conducting auctions online and promoting them online makes tons of sense. 

 

Better information of auctioned items

Attendees of an online auction can also get better information about items being sold with online auctions.  Although they may not be able to see items in person, web pages can be built to promote items and video on demand can be shot to promote them.  The amount of information to share about items is virtually limitless as well. 

 

Bidding can be digitized

The entire bidding process can be digitized, and peak efficiencies can be gained.  A digital bidding process can handle multiple simultaneous bidders allowing bidding prices to skyrocket.  The digital aspect will also eliminate human error from the equation. 

 

Everyone loves a deal!

Auctions are exciting and can be “must watch TV.”  Everyone absolutely loves a deal and loves the thrill of the chase.  Auctions can bring both.  By bringing them they provide compelling entertainment and interesting streaming content. 

 

Engage with customers

Leveraging video streaming services for live auctions is one more way to interact with customers in a live albeit virtual manner.  Chat functions can be enabled, surveys can be set up and data can be collected from attendees to make the next engagement with them even more customized. 

 

Technical challenges

Running a big live event is not with out challenges or points to pay attention to.  This is where Tulix comes in and can help.  The three biggest areas we find needing attention when it comes to online video streaming of auctions is 1) there are many moving parts, 2) security needs to be addressed, and finally 3) latency or time delays can be a factor. 

 

Many moving parts

When it comes to auction streaming and using live video streaming sites there is a lot of steps in the process.  Receiving the incoming video and audio feeds needs to be done.  Encoding and setting up multiple profiles for different devices and bandwidth must also be done.  Packaging for different types of devices must also be addressed.  Serving content over a CDN or CDNs must occur, and a good portal and app must be developed.  Incoming feedback from viewers and bidders must be handled.  Bidding must be processed, and transactions handled as well.  Fortunately, Tulix can address all these points with our end to end solutions. 

 

Security

At Tulix we run everything out of our data center and pay close attention to security.  We are not building our platform on someone else’s cloud infrastructure.  This makes them more secure in addition to being more cost effective.  We will co-locate in other data centers for back up and redundancy.  These locations are either Tulix owned and operated sites or space we have utilized for multiple years. 

 

Latency

Latency and time delays can be a concern for many live events.  They are a concern for sports, and they are a concern for auctions also.  Bidders’ replies must be handled in real time.  The auction must process incoming bids and viewer interaction with minimal latency.  At Tulix we take advantage of WebRTC for latency.  WebRTC is an open standard that enables low latency streaming formats that can have sub-500-millisecond video delivery.  One of the most compelling aspects of WebRTC is its native browser support.  This eliminates the need for end users to download cumbersome apps to view streams – they just do that in an embedded browser.  WebRTC is used extensively by Tulix for live sports streaming, live TV streaming, online betting and the bidding that is part of the auction process. 

 

Want to Learn More? 

Tulix has been providing streaming solutions and services since the start of streaming video.  We provide live event streaming with low latency, OTT, and IPTV solutions, plus TullixCDN, a low cost and efficient content delivery network.  Tulix offers video playout and cloud origination from our data center suitable for all types of content owners.  Tulix also has FAST and FAST network and channel services and partners with portals for aggregating and monetizing streaming channels and content.  Tulix provides end to end video delivery services and platforms that include transcoding, content management, monetization and billing, analytics, security, and apps for viewers and subscribers.  We serve content owners, broadcasters, OTT and IPTV operators, enterprises, house of worship and live event streaming customers.  Please contact us here to discuss auction streaming, video streaming services or WebRTC for latency.  http://tulix.com/contact