Twitter launches 360-degree video streaming on Periscope

Twitter is bringing live 360-degree video streams to Periscope.

The feature is launching immediately — you can already watch the “first ever #Periscope360” stream right here. But while everyone can watch in 360 degrees, only “select partners” are able to stream in 360 degrees at launch.

The implementation is pretty typical. On the desktop, you can click and drag around on the screen to rotate the camera. And on mobile, you can twist and turn your phone to change your perspective. The video quality isn’t particularly great — but then, most 360-degree video streams aren’t that great anyway. And it does appear to work.

Periscope says it’s testing 360-degree streams with a “small group of partners.” It didn’t discuss wider rollout plans, but it sounds like broadcasting support will launch to the general public at some point down the road.

The launch comes right on the heels of Facebook’s testing of 360-degree broadcasts on Facebook Live. Twitter and Periscope have come under a lot of pressure from Facebook Live as publishers switch over to Facebook’s platform in search of more viewers.

Twitter is somewhat ahead of Facebook on 360 video — Facebook plans to launch to some partners “in the coming months” — but the experimental nature of 360-degree video means it’ll only do so much to make Periscope stand out in the meantime.

The article was published on : theverge