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IBM Video Streaming

IBM Video Streaming

Overview

What is IBM Video Streaming?

IBM Video Streaming solutions are used to stream virtual events, executive town halls, video marketing product launches, and OTT streaming. According to IBM, the solution is built for privacy, reliability and scale, to optimize video quality, and powered by IBM…

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Recent Reviews

IBM Video Streaming

10 out of 10
February 12, 2024
Incentivized
IBM Video Streaming has proven to be an invaluable tool in our K-12 school district, significantly enhancing educational delivery, …
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Thanks IBM

9 out of 10
November 07, 2020
We used it for a 2-hour premier of a movie and a zoom Q&A panel to major healthcare institutions around the country. We were looking for a …
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IBM Watson Review

8 out of 10
November 08, 2019
Incentivized
It is used across the whole organization to help my clients to watch interviews remotely whenever they cannot join in person at our …
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Awards

Products that are considered exceptional by their customers based on a variety of criteria win TrustRadius awards. Learn more about the types of TrustRadius awards to make the best purchase decision. More about TrustRadius Awards

Popular Features

View all 31 features
  • Video link sharing (93)
    10.0
    100%
  • Live streaming (95)
    9.0
    90%
  • Video quality / Bandwidth controls (92)
    9.0
    90%
  • Mobile compatibility (87)
    9.0
    90%

Reviewer Pros & Cons

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Pricing

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N/A
Unavailable

What is IBM Video Streaming?

IBM Video Streaming solutions are used to stream virtual events, executive town halls, video marketing product launches, and OTT streaming. According to IBM, the solution is built for privacy, reliability and scale, to optimize video quality, and powered by IBM Watson AI for video…

Entry-level set up fee?

  • No setup fee
For the latest information on pricing, visithttps://www.ibm.com/products/video…

Offerings

  • Free Trial
  • Free/Freemium Version
  • Premium Consulting/Integration Services

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Alternatives Pricing

What is Vimeo?

Vimeo is a video experience platform. They enable anyone to create high-quality video experiences to connect and bring ideas to life. They proudly serve their growing community of nearly 300 million users — from creative storytellers to globally distributed teams at the world's largest companies.

What is Gumlet?

Gumlet is a video hosting platform used to upload, optimize, and stream videos, offering detailed video analytics.Gumlet simplifies the video workflow from upload to analytics, and can be used to control every aspect of the end-user streaming experience while running the streaming pipeline on…

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Features

Video Marketing

Features related to using video marketing content, as well as marketing videos themselves.

6.1
Avg 7.2

Video Platform Integrations

Integrations between the enterprise video platform and other business applications.

7.6
Avg 6.3

Video Security

Features related to the security of an organization's content stored on an enterprise video platform.

9
Avg 8.7

Video Player

Features that support playing and watching video content that is hosted on the enterprise video platform.

7.8
Avg 8.4

Video Analytics

Features related to collecting and analyzing data around video streaming quality, viewer behavior, etc.

8.2
Avg 7.5

Video Hosting, Management & Storage

Features related to hosting, managing, and storing video content.

9
Avg 8.5

Video Engagement

Features to engage viewers around video content, particularly for live streams.

9
Avg 8.0
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Product Details

What is IBM Video Streaming?

IBM Video Streaming solutions are used to stream virtual events, executive town halls, video marketing product launches, and OTT streaming. According to IBM, the solution is built for privacy, reliability and scale, to optimize video quality, and powered by IBM Watson AI for video search and automated closed captioning.

IBM Enterprise Video Streaming can power security-rich video communications ranging from employee town halls, to trainings and department meetings, to digital events – boosting engagement from virtually anywhere. This cloud-based solution includes AI-driven deep search and the ability to track usage down to the individual user level with metrics as detailed as when content was accessed, device information, geographic location of the viewer and completion percentage.

https://ibm.biz/Video_Streaming_product_page


IBM Video Streaming Features

Video Marketing Features

  • Supported: Lead generation
  • Supported: Video personalization
  • Supported: Audience for distribution
  • Supported: eCommerce
  • Supported: Support for advertisements
  • Supported: Video SEO

Video Security Features

  • Supported: Video access controls
  • Supported: User management
  • Supported: SSO support
  • Supported: Password protection
  • Supported: Video link sharing
  • Supported: Embed restrictions
  • Supported: Internal video
  • Supported: External video

Video Player Features

  • Supported: Player customization
  • Supported: Embedded videos
  • Supported: Video quality / Bandwidth controls
  • Supported: Mobile compatibility

Video Analytics Features

  • Supported: Streaming quality reports
  • Supported: Per viewer tracking
  • Supported: Per video tracking
  • Supported: Video analytics dashboard

Video Hosting, Management & Storage Features

  • Supported: On-Demand video
  • Supported: Live streaming
  • Supported: Impact of streaming on network
  • Supported: Video upload & format support
  • Supported: Video library / File management
  • Supported: Video portal
  • Supported: Video downloads
  • Supported: Video editing
  • Supported: High definition support
  • Supported: Closed captioning / Transcription

Video Engagement Features

  • Supported: Audience polling
  • Supported: Audience Q&A / Live chat
  • Supported: Video comments

Additional Features

  • Supported: Scalability
  • Supported: Enterprise Security
  • Supported: Quality of Service
  • Supported: Integrated Content Management
  • Supported: Multi-CDN Delivery via SD-CDN
  • Supported: Cloud-based Transcoding
  • Supported: Social Sharing with Facebook and Twitter Integration
  • Supported: Integrated Chat
  • Supported: Live Analytics Dashboard
  • Supported: Auto-Recording
  • Supported: Custom Branding
  • Supported: Lead Capture
  • Supported: Live Playlists
  • Supported: Support for Professional Encoding/Production Gear
  • Supported: Enterprise Support Plans
  • Supported: Managed Event and Production Services
  • Supported: Enterprise Content Delivery Network (eCDN)

IBM Video Streaming Screenshots

Screenshot of the viewer's portal experience (channel page).Screenshot of how the automatically generated closed captions can be edited if necessary.Screenshot of the Analytics Console.Screenshot of the Watson Media CMSScreenshot of the viewer's portal experience (channel page).

IBM Video Streaming Videos

IBM Video Streaming Technical Details

Deployment TypesSoftware as a Service (SaaS), Cloud, or Web-Based
Operating SystemsUnspecified
Mobile ApplicationApple iOS, Android, Mobile Web

Frequently Asked Questions

Kaltura, Dalet Flex, and Vidyard are common alternatives for IBM Video Streaming.

Reviewers rate Video personalization and Video link sharing highest, with a score of 10.

The most common users of IBM Video Streaming are from Small Businesses (1-50 employees).

IBM Video Streaming Customer Size Distribution

Consumers0%
Small Businesses (1-50 employees)15%
Mid-Size Companies (51-500 employees)50%
Enterprises (more than 500 employees)35%
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Comparisons

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Reviews and Ratings

(206)

Attribute Ratings

Reviews

(1-25 of 37)
Companies can't remove reviews or game the system. Here's why
March 24, 2024

24/7 IBM YMMD

Cale J. Rogers | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
I use IBM Video Ustream to provide 24/7 live streams of CTV Channel 11 video broadcasts and KCSU audio broadcasts. CTV also relies on Ustream on demand video features and storage to deliver show content and other videos to online audiences.
  • Ustream is easy to deploy and manage in 24/7 video streaming scenarios. The analytics module has been helpful to provide feedback to sales and marketing teams about the success of event campaigns. The live content works everywhere with no interruptions and we have received a lot of positive feedback from viewers about there hight quality of the video playback.
  • Offline playlists are a powerful and unique feature of the Ustream platform. When our headend is down, we love the fact that Ustream continues playback of programmed content to keep viewers engaged until while we work on returning service. This workflow also works well to support one-time live events such as pre-game shows.
  • Channel management is easy and offers a lot of powerful options. After the success of the 24/7 CTV live video broadcast, the station manager for KCSU wanted to set up a live video broadcast DJ channel. I was able to set up a new channel and configure a camera encoder in the booth in less than a day.
  • Live chat and social stream interactions are also a helpful feature. I have worked with our academic program managers to provide live feedback from online students during lesson events. Providing support for both broadcast and classroom needs speaks to the flexibility of the platform.
  • Ustream is simple to manage, but I would like to see improved user data management. It would be great to allow users to sign up for premium features (such as chat or other services) so we can get a better idea of who's watching. It would also be handy to manage analytics as "event data sets." For example, a live event would include a data set. Then when the event is used for on demand purposes, a separate data set would be created. This way, I can isolate data sets without concerns over deleting anything or including erroneous outliers.
  • Another feature I'd like to see is an option for adding "content resources" that can be included with the video player embed. This would help in situations where I want to deliver an audio version of the content, expand a description of the content (in the form of a simple paragraph or mini-blog entry), or just add additional files that users can download and print to use along with the video.
  • I would also like see poll and quizzing options. This would probably work best with a registration system to keep track of specific interaction. Interacting with the audience is key to building better viewing habits and understanding who's watching and why.
IBM Cloud Video (including Ustream) is a highly versatile and easy to manage cloud video platform. It's well designed to support live event programs and 24/7 video broadcasting in a channel format. The platform is also a robust video-on-demand tool, especially in post-live situations. It's also well suited for multi-user environments in which some clients only require a handful of features and others need all the bells and whistles.
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
IBM Watson Media's Video Streaming is excellent for broadcasting video behind a gate while also providing smooth functionality. It offers many customizable features for various needs within our organization and for providing informational videos to our audiences.

The off-air feature allows for select videos to play prior to scheduled broadcasts--essentially, it allows for teasers/trailers to play before the actual featured videos. This proved extremely useful for our organization to provide a looping informational trailer before we launched our scheduled programming.

In addition, the live feature integration is phenomenal. The platform integrates with Zoom and this feature takes precedence over scheduled playlists which is a exceptional aspect because the user has the ability to schedule transition videos of specific slides that will be interrupted when those on the Zoom side are ready to go live. My organization used this for a live Q and A session to further engage the community and spread awareness of a lesser known form of dementia.

Finally, the support team was beyond responsive and accommodating. Any and all questions we had with setting up the platform, hammering out the details, and configuring the videos to run smoothly were addressed by the communicative and attentive IBM support team.

Overall, this is an incredibly advanced and feature-packed platform that would serve any and all video requirements an organization may need. It is well worth the investment and I highly recommend it.
  • Video scheduling
  • Integration with live platforms like Zoom
  • Off-air video capabilities for trailers and informative pre-feature clips
  • Use of Q & A/chat box for delivering messages to panelists in external platforms like Zoom
  • Superb technical support services
  • It isn't always user-friendly or straightforward, but the technical support team will assist in any way they can to walk users through the platform.
Best for
  • Pre-taped/scheduled videos
  • Providing access to specific video content over a certain period of time (e.g., limiting access to a video for a week or a month)
  • Provides gated features so access to content can be restricted or emails/viewer information can be collected.
  • Extensive metrics to determine video reach/viewership, which proves great for reporting to marketing departments.
Not best for
  • Videos you do not mind having available anytime
  • A library of content that you do not wish to place behind an access gate
  • One area of improvement on the platform is the ability to customize confirmation email send outs to video registrants.
Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
I manage live streaming for our university’s central communications office. I’ve used Ustream/IBM Watson Media's Video Streaming to centralize the streaming of major university events to one channel. I’ve also helped our smaller division set up their own channels for their events.

[Updated review on 10/2020: I decided to update this review after IBM stripped one more piece of useful functionality (a simple YouTube integration) without notice this week, and after many months of glitches in their web CMS and cloud platform. We have been a "metal plan" (self-serve) customer for years, and unfortunately, I can no longer recommend this product that deliver excellent performance for a good price. The price now is too high for what it currently delivers, relative to market peers. Save your money and look elsewhere if you're budget is below $20K per year for a live/VOD platform for your company.]
  • Rock-solid performance [updated review on 10/2020: not as reliable as 12 months ago]
  • Good video management system back-end [updated review on 10/2020: glitchy, waning engineering support]
  • Easy for non-technical users to grasp quickly
  • Invoicing - would like to see email notification/automation [updated review on 10/2020: Improved - of course, because it helps them collect $]
  • Updated templates for embedding channels on web pages [updated review on 10/2020: No major changes]
  • Beefing up event notification and functionality and subscription opportunities (this was stripped away earlier) [Updated review on 10/2020: Nothing new here]
Very solid performance. Friendly, supportive and responsive customer support. Great job to those on the front lines. You’ve kept me from canceling a few times in the past!

[updated review on 10/2020: IBM has very solid streaming infrastructure in place, and a live stream very seldom has any issues. But many other aspects of their streaming service has had significant glitches recently. If you're a "whale" customer looking to spend $50K a year or more on streaming, IBM may serve you well. But if you're a small to medium-sized business who wants to significantly over-pay for IBM Video's so-called self-serve, or "metal" plans, you will find great customer support but significantly lacking engineering support and product management. You could probably get a much better deal with Vimeo and other vendors in the sub-$15K annual range.]
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
We use IBM Watson Media's Video Streaming for our weekly Sunday Service broadcasting, and occasionally special events. We are able to use IBM's tools to track viewership and even integrate the stream and chat function into our website to reach people all over the United States. This is especially great for our elderly community and the rare occasion services are canceled due to bad weather.
  • Ease of use.
  • Flexibility of using different streaming software.
  • Great interface for viewers with no extra work.
  • Occasionally, I've had issues with losing connection, making it impossible to stream.
  • Metrics can be a little confusing to find accurate viewer numbers.
  • The web interface can make finding certain things like chat windows difficult to find.
IBM Watson Media's Video Streaming is great where the user would like have control over their in-house video system, and not have to think about it once it hits the RTMP. It's flexible enough that you don't have to be wary of using or not using specific components.
Where it would be less well-suited is someone who is not at all familiar with streaming and would need an all-in-one plug-and-play system. That being said, this is easy to use.
November 16, 2019

IBM Watson Media Review

LeShawnda Fitzgerald | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Ready For Spanish uses IBM Watson Media streaming to teach our weekly kids Spanish classes to our online subscribers. This platform is used by our online teachers and allows us to broadcast and embed our pre-recorded and live Spanish courses.
  • It allows us to stream without special equipment. We mainly use our phones.
  • The quality of the videos is amazing and I love the fact that videos auto-save and you can download and edit them for later.
  • The program allows you to create playlists so that we can stream on our online channel 24/7
  • I'd like the option to be able to upload the videos directly to Vimeo.
  • The download speed could be faster.
  • The program is great and was perfect for what we needed.
I've already recommended this to other business owners who are looking for streaming ways to monetize their membership platforms. It is also very user friendly so you don't need to be a technical expert to use it.
Joshua Iley | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
As an Audio Visual Event services provider, we use IBM Watson Media's Video Streaming for all of our live streaming needs for various clients. There are several factors that we feel make IBM's service the leading choice, including it having a rich, customizable interface, multiple channels, security features. Using the service with multiple corporate clients allows us to offer a customized solution for different clients, while keeping a uniform interface for our technical specialists.
  • Channels - Having a channel that can be customized, and having a single link that can be shared before the event without having to update links to attendees is key. Attendees then being able to access the same link to view past broadcasts is important.
  • Security - Password protection on a channel is great for those looking to have limited access or monetize a stream.
  • Having separate Q&A and chat windows is great. Some events use one or the other, or both.
  • Increased security - I would love to have channels be inaccessible to searches on the website, but still accessible via private link.
  • A separate mobile app that presenters could use just for the Q&A and Chat module would be fantastic.
  • Support for multiple hardware encoders so there could be a failover.
IBM Watson is perfect for webcasts, especially in a corporate environment. It is not well suited for 2 or 3-way web conference-style communication.
November 08, 2019

IBM Watson Review

Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
It is used across the whole organization to help my clients to watch interviews remotely whenever they cannot join in person at our facility located in Milan. We use it whenever it is requested by the client. We also use it to record our sessions, download the videos and make these available for watching at a later stage to reference.
  • Streaming video.
  • Recording sessions.
  • Easy link connection.
  • Password access to be able to view different projects.
  • It does not allow for the streaming of two different languages at the same time, with the possibility to record in both languages on two different files.
  • You cannot record a session for more than three hours.
  • You cannot see the name of people who are connected as viewers.
IBM Watson Media is well suited for any streaming of video content with sound. You can stream right from your laptop. I never tried from mobile as we always use it from a fixed PC connected with a digital camera and audio system.
Frank Irzyk | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
We use IBM Watson Media Video Streaming to be able to provide parents and staff the ability to view significant public events in real-time and in recorded formats. Often parents and off-duty staff and even staff who are not able to leave classroom situations are able to view and participate in activities provided by the Overbrook School For The Blind and are able to view events in a time convenient to them. Students get a real kick out of being able to view performances that they were involved in after the fact. It is a bonus that the video and audio are crystal clear.
  • Stream and record significant events.
  • Stream and record staff events and meetings.
  • Stream events with moderately priced equipment.
  • Better opportunities to stream using wireless connections.
  • Simpler user interface.
IBM Watson is well suited for event streaming.
Beth Jinkerson | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
My church uses IBM Watson Media's Video Streaming to webcast all public assemblies for Bible study and worship of the church that meets at 138 Providence Road in Oak Ridge TN. We are a congregation of about 145 members drawn from Oak Ridge, Clinton, and Knoxville and surrounding rural areas. The webcast serves members who are homebound or otherwise unable to attend in person. We also make the assemblies available to interested people around the world.

IBM’s video streaming service is cost-effective for us since we are such a small congregation. We are able to use open-source free products to support our video stream, making this a uniquely accessible approach to a service that is of primary importance to our mission statement.
  • This service allows multiple viewers to either set up a free, ongoing account or watch anonymously without getting an account.
  • Whether or not the viewer logs into an account or views anonymously, they can participate in the chat room, another feature of IBM’s software. Here, one can ask questions, make comments, and ask for technical support. Our webcasting team also uses this chat room feature to manage/test technical details related to webcast quality and other specific settings for the stream (I.e., sound, image, camera focus, etc.).
  • The ability to auto-record is another useful feature for us. The company offers a generous 1000 hours of recorded content per month, which is more than enough for our roughly 4 hours of streaming per week on average. This makes it possible to save an entire year of worship and study time for playback.
  • Occasionally, we experience a form of static that lasts for about 1 to 2 minutes. It appears in the live stream and in the auto-recorded file, but not in the live worship assembly. It occurs roughly 1 in every 4 hours of webcast time. I wish there was a way to trace the source of that recurring static. The diagnostic tools could be more robust.
  • It would be nice if the chat room allowed a user photo/avatar for each user to personalize that a little more.
  • I have wished for a way that an admin could use a “laser pointer” on the video window to point out something on the feed that other live viewers could see.
  • It would be wonderful to have a mini-tutorial for viewers who are not technically savvy that would inform them of how to get to the site and explain how they can use the software. For example, how they can see and type in the chat room, how to maximize the screen and make it smaller. Some of our viewers are in nursing homes or otherwise limited in capability to learn to use this on their own.
This software is ideal for any size church. The ability to purchase a modest number of viewer-hours per month for a reasonable cost (no-ads) is hugely important for non-profit organizations. Being able to live-stream, record and watch from the archives is also great. Finally, the chat room allows for a more interactive experience than traditional tv broadcasting.
Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
We use it for our annual conference, which takes place once a year. We live stream the sessions over a 4 day period. It gives us the ability to allow anyone to view our broadcast (with the link). Also, nice to allow comment streams.
  • Once set up, very easy to start/stop streams
  • Review saves streams, editing information
  • Sharing saved streams with others
  • Easy way to save streams and download later
  • I do not like the free version going away. It allowed us to keep streams available when we aren't live streaming (once a year).
  • Allow editing of multiple stream information (like the name).
Well suited for larger events where you don't know your target audience's availability to social media or their experience. Give them a link and they view. Also, they can go back and watch previous streams all in one place.
Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Our team uses it live stream content to our website. It is being used by two departments. It allows our company to live stream events internally and externally, generating brand awareness.
  • Ability to create multiple channels for live streaming
  • Quality and reliability of the broadcasts
  • Easy to use and integrate with our website and social channels
  • Bloated user interface
  • Difficulty navigating between channels
  • Analytics Console could greatly use improvement (i.e. dynamic reporting)
Well suited for live streaming events on a website or social channels. Can't think of anywhere it would be less appropriate.
Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
I use it to stream events for my clients for public or private use. It give me the ability to stream on a private platform to clients that don't want YouTube or Facebook.
  • I like the password protection
  • The embedding options are great
  • The feedback and support functions are great
  • Playlists and scheduled broadcasts are good
  • I would like more branding options
  • I downloaded recorded streams that were of a lower quality than my actual stream quality
This platform is suited for people that don't want to use free public platforms that are full of adverts.
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
We livestream a range of events, from our graduation ceremony to live Q & As. Essentially livestreaming gives us wider access to our stakeholders, be it colleagues, families of our students, prospective students or current students themselves.
  • Storage of footage is excellent, clear and easily managed.
  • Syncing to our streaming system is easy.
  • Reliability is always good.
  • The preview functionality of saved footage can be very laggy.
It suits a lot of our streaming in regards to having chat functionality and also as a lot of streams are to education establishments it is often much more user friendly in comparison to more social channels like youtube or facebook in regard to accessing whilst on site. To clarify, YouTube and Facebook are blocked on a lot of school's ICT systems so they struggle to access content on there, Ustream/IBM Watson always works.
October 04, 2019

Pretty good product.

Score 5 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
We stream our weekly services.
  • Stores media
  • Transfers to Youtube
  • Download capability
  • Support
  • Too Expensive
  • Downloads take too long.
You can get the same service with Youtube for free. Editing video is tedious and time consuming.
Sound quality could be improved. The service is mostly plug and play. When data limits are reached streaming shuts off. Users need basic understanding of editing. Could use more tutorials. Changing text is not intuitive. Menus options could be clearer.
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
We utilize IBM Watson Media's Video Streaming to distribute the live and archived streams from our weekend services to our website. This format is being used across the entire organization and we have found that it is a reliable resource in communicating with parishioners and other interested parties who could not attend the live event.
  • Quality video
  • Easy to use interface
  • Simple to incorporate into our website and other modes of communication
  • Few connectivity issues but occasionally there is that glitch.
We have found that Watson is a great option for our organization's size. Larger churches may have the option of utilizing more features by choosing a higher level of service. Smaller congregations may find it to be a bit expensive.
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Our sports association organizes a mountain running race supported by many sponsors. The day of the race we set up a live stream of the race with connections to different crucial points of the racetrack connected with long-range wireless devices and all media is collected in a streaming manager software that mixes images with ads that encode and stream the content to IBM servers.
  • Easy to integrate with many streaming software.
  • Powerful statistics.
  • Good control of embedded content and it makes it easy to avoid other sites embedding your content without your permission.
  • I don't feel comfortable with the pricing model.
IBM Watson is well-suited for professional streaming situations where you don't want to deal with limitations and risks that most common social media implements.
Score 7 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
In the event world, we receive a lot of requests for streaming live events across campus. We use IBM Watson Media's Video Streaming to connect with audiences around the world. With our camera setup and a local streaming kit, we're able to bring our event to overflow rooms across campus, and stream online for anyone at home.
  • Adaptability. We're able to configure our livestreams to the needs of our clients.
  • Detail-oriented. There's a lot of options to look into, compared to the bare-bones packages that many of the competitors offer.
  • Cost. Many other services offer similar services at no cost.
  • Viewer hours. This is a confusing concept for our clients, and we don't like the idea of a limited number of viewer hours allotted each month.
  • Tiered membership system. This should be simplified.
Perfect for most of our needs. It's great for run and gun video streaming for events, moderated Q+A sessions, and live chats related to streamed material. Auto-record functions make it great for record-keeping purposes.
It's not great for large events with many viewers, and not great for events that may skyrocket in popularity, bringing up high viewer hours.
Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Streamed a highly-produced sales kick-off event to several sites and hundreds of employees. Event featured live speakers and video content.
  • Quality of video
  • Easy to access
  • Solid streaming capability
  • Pricepoint
Appropriate for streaming across multiple sites. Less appropriate where social media and other interactive features are needed.
Loual Puliafito | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
At St. Patrick's Cathedral, the video streaming service is used every day for daily Mass. We also stream organ recitals, music concerts, and special occasions. Yes the streaming service is used by the entire organization. The biggest problem addressed is sharing the good works of the Cathedral with those people who are homebound or live in another part of the country or world.
  • It's great at hosting large amount of streamers at once. We reach upwards of 5,000 at a time.
  • The stream adjusts to the device the user is using.
  • Placing information in the stream is very easy.
  • I would like for it to approve its capabilities with connecting to social media.
Let's just say I was in a unique situation where all I had was my phone. I could literally broadcast a stream from my iPhone. Amazing!
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
We use Watson Video Streaming just once a year for our high school Senior Signing Day event in May of each year. It is pretty easy to navigate and the guys on the service line are great. They really want to help resolve your issue in the best manner possible. We stream our two-hour event for parents who are at work and attend the live event or other family members living outside the area and can't attend. We fundraise and take comments during the live stream. As I said, I really like the folks on the helpline.
  • The video is high quality!
  • Ease of use
  • Great customer service
  • Good pricing
  • Not a technician so I'm good for what I need it to do.
It is well suited for our event because we want our live streaming to be of high quality, but our funds are limited. Watson gives us both high quality at a cost even our small non-profit can afford. Ustream was good, but Watson Media is even better.
Score 5 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
We had been using Ustream since before it was acquired by IBM and before Facebook and YouTube offered streaming services. We are a house of worship and we stream our church services 3 times a week all year round. Ustream gave us an opportunity to share our church experience with people who cannot physically attend our church services.
  • The video and audio quality is very impressive compared to other streaming services.
  • Good customer support.
  • Pricing. Now there are more companies offering streaming services for less money and with less limitations.
IBM Watson Media's Video Streaming is well suited for any organization that can afford to pay top dollar for their services.
Christopher Cantrall | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
We use IBM Watson Media to deliver streams in a closed-loop when requested by clients. We never allow open access but always have the videos gated behind a password. IBM Watson Media is used organization-wide and is our only streaming tool, which we use instead of another industry alternatives.
  • Price.
  • Uptime.
  • Ease of use.
  • Ease of sharing.
  • Could use a better domain name.
  • More obvious IBM branding.
  • Better chat functionality.
For simple video presentations, IBM Watson Media really shines. In cases where our clients don’t necessarily need to do anything complex with the videos live, like time-stamping or other live annotation. We like that we can easily share the link and password and get people into the stream quick. The chat functionality is also a client favorite.
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Our company produces a live-streaming broadcast for Las Vegas-based entertainers. It is critical we have no lags, disruption, or dropped content during the live productions. Doing live broadcast provides no margin of error as compared to on-demand or more traditional broadcasts.
We found Upstream after we had an unsuccessful experience with many of the other well-known streaming services.
  • We were two hours away from our first live broadcast when our streaming service failed. We contacted IBM and the show went on as scheduled.
  • We went from initial contact with IBM to live streaming in less than two hours, no problems.
  • If reliability is critical then there is only one choice, the IBM Watson Media service.
  • If budget is important then IBM Watson proved to more cost-effective than services advertising lower initial cost.
  • While we set it up in less than two hours we did need to do some trial and error through the first show.
  • The documentation provided is technical and complete which requires time to figure out all the options available for the user. Being more concise would be better.
  • It would be nice to have a simpler process for creating passcodes for viewers to select a show and pay for those shows without us having to generate codes each time.
It is perfect for live and on-demand video streaming where customers expect excellent results. If someone only needs to stream a meeting of Youtube style videos it is overkill, but this doesn't mean it does not work, it is just a waste of the capabilities of the IBM video service. For individual gamers who want to stream it is also massive overkill but if they want the best service available this is the one.
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
IBM Video Streaming (previously Ustream) has the best pricing around. Their analytics are incredibly granular and their servers have always been reliable. We have used Ustream for two years here and I used it for three at a previous company - it grows with each user and there isn't a product on the market delivering what they offer at this scale and with this feature set.
  • Metrics are great and extremely specific.
  • The platform loads quickly and scales to different size video players easily.
  • The support structure is unheard of for any of the competitors.
  • Their documentation on how to use their call to action/api features is lacking.
For a medium sized church, Ustream/IBM is the best streaming service answer available because of its high value and strong feature set.
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
We use IBM Watson Media's Video Streaming to bring a closer sense of community and inclusion for our remote staff.
  • Easy to use
  • Many options for engagement
  • Looks good
  • More security options like encryption
Great for one way communication. If you are looking for bidirectional communication then there are probably better options.
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