Advanced Platform Options

We looped the video in Live mode, simulating an online broadcast. The stream has a built-in clock at the bottom that shows the video encoding time in the UTC time zone. Note that the clock in the stream is no more than 4–5 seconds behind the real time.

Benefits of CMAF

In a typical video streaming process, the footage undergoes multiple transformation stages from the original recording site to the end viewer. At each stage, the video is segmented into chunks lasting several seconds each to facilitate efficient conversion, encoding, and transmission over the public internet. We’ve successfully reduced the traditional latency time from 30–50 seconds down to an impressive 4–5 seconds via low latency, HTTP-based streaming protocols like DASH and HLS, which utilize an HTTP 1.1 CTE extension known as “chunked transfer encoding.” CMAF allows us to break down the primary video segments into smaller chunks and instantly transfer them as they’re processed by the transcoding servers.

When it comes to video delivery protocols, two of the most prominent are HLS (HTTP Live Streaming) and MPEG-DASH (MPEG Dynamic Adaptive Streaming over HTTP.) Traditional methods required encoding the video twice to cater to both protocols because they aren’t directly compatible, consuming extra time and storage. CMAF’s more abstract format allows the use of different manifests for the same set of encoded data, so the data only needs to be stored once but can be accessed via both HLS and MPEG-DASH. For devices that don’t support CMAF, a fallback to the classic HLS MPEG-TS format is also available.

How Gcore Live Stream Works

Our platform accommodates live streams in either RTMP or SRT protocols, which we transcode using Adaptive Bitrate (ABR) technology. This enables us to provide multiple bitrate options for end-users: 4K UHD, FullHD, HD, SD, and LQ. We also offer customizable bitrate settings to meet specific client requirements, and there is no limit on the number of simultaneous streams that can be transcoded.

In terms of assembly and delivery, our encoder and packager work convert the video stream into MP4 chunks with CMAF support. The available protocols for transmission to the final viewer are MPEG-DASH CMAF or HLS with fragmented MP4 (fMP4.) We use our own powerful CDN for stable video content delivery and load balancing between servers.

If you're interested in experiencing our streaming capabilities firsthand, we provide access to manifests for video delivery protocols:

1. MPEG-DASH, CMAF (low latency) – https://demo.gvideo.io/cmaf/2675_19146/index.mpd
2. LL HLS, CMAF (low latency) – https://demo.gvideo.io/cmaf/2675_19146/master.m3u8
3. Traditional HLS, MPEG TS (no low latency) – https://demo.gvideo.io/mpegts/2675_19146/master_mpegts.m3u8