YouTube Improves Livestreaming Latency, Adds New Chat Moderation Tools

YouTube rolled out today several improvements to its livestreaming functionality, including features that make broadcasting delays even shorter, as well as new chat moderation tools.

First, a new ‘ultra low-latency’ streaming option will cut down on the lag that occurs when a stream is captured and when it shows up on users’ screen to just a couple of seconds. (YouTube already offers ‘normal’ and ‘low latency’ buffering options). The ‘ultra’ option (see below) makes real-time engagement more feasible, YouTube Live product lead Kurt Wilms wrote in a company blog post, “so you’ll be able to answer fan questions and get viewer input during your ‘Let’s Plays’ faster than ever before.”

In terms of new chat features, YouTube is introducing inline moderation, which enables streamers to hold the ‘alt/option’ button on their keyboards in order to pause chat feeds and remove objectionable messages with a single click. And by simply opting in, streamers can now hold potentially inappropriate chat messages for review using the same technology that YouTube utilizes for traditional comments.

Streamers can also share blacklisted user lists with delegated chat moderators across both traditional video comments and live video chats, and, in the future, YouTube says that hidden user lists will work across both comments and chat regardless of where the initial block occurs.

Finally, YouTube will let iOS users stream exactly what’s appearing on their iPhone screens by adding support for the flagship YouTube app to Apple’s ReplayKit. Onscreen streaming was previously available for select app games on YouTube Gaming, according to YouTube, but now users will be able to use their phone’s microphone and front-facing camera to add video and audio commentary to these streams.

Check it out in action below: