Twitters recently launched Explore sectionwill now feature live videos sourced from Periscope withinits Top Trends, the company announced yesterday. The move will further integrate Twitters standalone live streaming app into its main platform, leaving even fewer reasons to keep aseparate app dedicated to live streaming video around.
The companyhas been criticized for its slow progress inintegrating Periscopes live streaming capabilities into its own app following theacquisition of the up-and-coming live broadcasting tool back in early 2015. Instead of leveraging Periscopes technology to immediately build out its own live streaming platform within Twitter, the company instead tried to operate Periscope as a separate entity similar to how Facebook treated Instagram.
But unlike Instagram, Periscope was acquired pre-launch, so it didnt have an existing community to build upon. It also faced intense competition from other tech giants, including Facebook and YouTube, as well as the then-newcomer startup Meerkat (which has since exited the live streaming race.)
Over the past severalmonths, Twitter has been course correcting with regard to how it treats Periscope, however. In December, it launched the ability to live stream directly in Twitter itself, without having to open up the Periscope app. The streams started on Twitter would also be visible in Periscope, but the second app was no longer a requirement.
In addition, Twitters mobile redesign which saw it replacing the Moments section with a broader Explore area for search and discovery of trends, Moments, video and more has also put a greateremphasis on live video. Of course, this includes those live streams Twitter now hosts through its numerous media deals, like those with the NFL and other sports organizations, Dick Clark Productions for various red carpet events, mediaoutlets for political and business news coverage, and more.
Now, it will tap into Periscope to promote the live streams from individual users as well.
These streams will be found in the Top Trends section within Explore, which is where you can browse the top hashtags and keyword searches that are currently blowing up on Twitters network. When live videos are taking place in one of those trending sections, theywill bemarked with a bright, red LIVE label for easy spotting.
When you watch the video, youll have the same experience as in Periscope with the ability to heart and comment on the video content, as well as retweet.
Whether or not live video is available wont influence the selection of trends, apparently. As of the time of writing, none of the top trends are featuring live video. However, in the case of breaking news, it will be easier to tune into the live content on Twitter, courtesy of thisnew feature.
