Amazon Web Services has released Amazon Interactive Video Service, a fully managed service that makes it easy to set up live, interactive video streams for a web or mobile application. Amazon IVS uses the same technology that powers Twitch, one of the most popular live streaming services in the world, with latency of less than three seconds, which is significantly lower than many services.
Customers can easily configure and stream live video through their own web site or mobile application, with scalable delivery that supports millions of concurrent viewers globally.
With the Amazon IVS software development kit and application programming interfaces, customers can also build interactive features into their live streams like virtual chat spaces, votes and polls, moderated question and answer sessions, and synchronized promotional elements.
There are no additional charges or upfront commitments required to use Amazon IVS. Customers pay only for video input to Amazon IVS and video output delivered to viewers. They simply need to send a video stream to an ingest endpoint and use the Amazon software development kit for web, iOS and Android to build engaging live video streaming applications.
The Amazon IVS service delivers streams over managed global infrastructure that is optimized for live video ingest, processing, and delivery
Amazon IVS removes the cost and complexity associated with setting up live, interactive video streams, allowing customers to focus on building engaging experiences for their viewers.
The latency from input to the end user is under three seconds, as opposed to 20-30 seconds that is typical with many services.
As a pricing example, it works out at $2 an hour for a stream plus 15 cents per viewer hour in full high definition, which would be $604 for a two-hour show to 2,000 people in the United States.
With Amazon IVS, customers can now directly access the same technology that powers Twitch to create engaging live video experiences in their own applications and deliver them to viewers around the world.
“Now with Amazon IVS, customers can leverage the same innovative technology that has taken Twitch over a decade to build and refine,” said Martin Hess, the general manager of Amazon IVS. “Any developer can build an interactive live streaming experience into their own application without having to manage the underlying video infrastructure.”
Twitch is a live video streaming service operated by Twitch Interactive, an Amazon subsidiary, previously known as Justin.tv. It focuses on video game streaming, esports, music and other events.