Facebook Live has introduced new options to its service in order to compete with Twitch and YouTube Gaming.
Twitch, the world’s leading livestreaming platform, boasts over 9 million active users a day—and Facebook is looking to get a piece of that action.
When Facebook Live launched in 2015, it only had mobile streaming and limited viewership. Now, Facebook is finally adding desktop streaming capabilities, which was previously only available on pages and not profiles. The feature will be useful for those who want to vlog, do general Q+A’s, and provide a professional service that doesn’t involve a shaky camera setup.
“We’ve also added a new feature that makes it easy to use streaming software or external hardware when going live from a computer,” Facebook said in its announcement. “This capability previously was possible only through a Page, but we’ve heard feedback from our community that it would be useful for profiles, too.”
Facebook is hoping that the new features will bring potential new streamers and companies to the service.
To start streaming on Facebook you must first download some streaming software, like OBS or XSplit, to enable the live feed. Then you should be ready to go by clicking “Go live” on the Facebook Live website.
With users now able to stream from their desktops, Facebook is most likely hoping that the feature will entice viewers and drive traffic.
