Twitter is finally fully embracing live video streaming.
Starting on Wednesday, users will be able to start broadcasting video right from Twitter (TWTR), without needing to use Periscope, the video streaming service Twitter acquired two years ago. Users won’t even need to download Periscope’s app at all, the company told Coins2Day.
This is Twitter’s latest move to integrate the two services, after adding in January the ability for users to embed and watch live Periscope videos on its platform.
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To start broadcasting, hit “compose new tweet” then tap the “LIVE” button, which brings up the pre-streaming frame. Once you’re ready to shoot video, hit the “Go Live” button. During a video broadcast, users who are watching can interact with the broadcaster by sending comments and hearts.
Twitter quietly acquired Periscope in late 2014, before the startup had even released a product. The following March, just weeks after the quick success of the now-defunct Meerkat live video service, Periscope debuted to a great deal of fanfare.
Periscope isn’t Twitter’s first investment into video. In 2012, the social media giant acquired Vine, whose app let users make 7-second looping videos. However, after neglecting the service, Twitter finally shut down Vine in October.
Meanwhile, Facebook (FB) has been aggressively pushing its own live video service, paying publishers and celebrities to broadcast videos, with initial contracts totaling more than $50 million, according to documents obtained by the Wall Street Journal in June.
