Critical Summary on the Article of “LIME: Understanding Commercial 360° Live Video Streaming Services”

Introduction

The report focuses on conducting a critical analysis of the article, “LIME: understanding commercial 360° live video streaming services.” The author of the article is elaborate on Live 360 video streaming services, which are typically different from other forms of streaming (Liu et al., 2019). It is important to conduct a critical summary of the article, highlighting the strengths and weaknesses that can be noted from the text. The article notes with concern that personalized live video streaming has increasingly become common amidst the high advancement in technology. In essence, the research paper presented addresses the issue of 360 live video streaming and presents an experiment to test for the viability of the process and the outcomes. It is also vital to note that the author of the paper has provided strategies that can help overcome challenges experienced due to poor network during 360 live video streaming (Liu et al., 2019). A critical summary will help gather important details from the article, as highlighted by the author.

Context and Significance of Work Presented

It is vital to note that the increased use of technology has had an impact on the scope of operations in the media industry. For instance, personalized 360 live video streaming services have become easy with the introduction of omnidirectional cameras that can be attached to phones. The advancement in technology has supported the streaming of such services on Facebook and YouTube, which is an indication that panoramic streaming works (Liu et al., 2019). It is critical to note that live video streaming is not as easy as video-on-demand streaming. It is panoramic, and it requires a larger bandwidth compared to other forms of video streaming. In essence, the article presented discusses important issues that are relevant in the media industry, as video streaming has become a norm on social media platforms. A close analysis of the techniques applied by the researcher will help unfold important facts on the topic of discussion.

Notably, the author presents facts on an aspect that is a current trend in the media industry. It is important to understand how significant the work is in explaining how to conduct a successful 360 live stream video, which is a common practice in the 21^st century. The work is critical in adding to the gap of information on live streaming challenges and how one can overcome the same. Equally, the author uses an experimental approach to gather facts on the topic of discussion, making the study more relevant in understanding core concepts in live media coverage. Online streaming requires that one has a stable bandwidth that can enable them to captures real-time recording of the video for streaming (Liu et al., 2019). The article is important and significant, given that it presents information on lie video streaming, an aspect that is a current trend on social media. The beneficiaries of the work presented include students learning various courses in the media industry, individuals who prefer to broadcast events on social media platforms, and stakeholders in the media industry. However, the information can be used to add to the gap of missing information on the topic of discussion.

Main Arguments in the Paper

It is vital to get a succinct highlight of the main arguments presented in the paper to critically review them. First, the authors have recognized the fact that commercial 360 live video streaming is complex to set up, unlike other options such as VOD. The argument presented is that advancements in technology have been a pillar in supporting developments such as commercial 360 live video streaming services (Liu et al., 2019). People can share real-time recorded videos online from a remote location using their devices. It is critical to note that the authors have ignored mentioning the cost of achieving such infrastructure for one to make it a success. Live streaming of videos is a costly process that demands that one uses internet with enough bandwidth to receive an improved quality.

It is important to critically evaluate the methods that the researchers have applied to arrive at a formidable conclusion on the topic of discussion. The study follows an experimental approach where a generic and holistic system is developed that allows researchers to conduct crowd-sourced measurements. Equally, it uses LIME to conduct a live experiment on the same as a strategy of gaining a deeper understanding of involved concepts (Liu et al., 2019). It utilized a 7-day study that was conducted on two platforms, including Facebook and YouTube. The experiment utilized a sample of 548 Amazon Mechanical viewers from over 35 countries in the world. The experiment participants had watched over 4000 minutes of 360 live stream video on either Facebook or YouTube. The article uses the unique dataset to characterize 360 live video streaming performances in the wild.

The authors have also highlighted limitations to the successful achievement of the set objectives throughout the experiment. The researchers’ controlled experiments in the article highlight important aspects of the quantification of viewpoint adaptiveness on 360 live video streaming. It highlights the inefficiencies of commercial platforms, which diminishes the benefits of viewpoint adaptiveness. In essence, the research approaches adopted in the article are rigorous and have helped highlight crucial facts on the topic of discussion (Liu et al., 2019). It is also vital to note that the research presents a diagram of the system infrastructure and how it operates. The research notes that live streaming video services require stringent and strong bandwidth to support the course. It is vital to note that the authors have listed limitations that challenge the successful transmission of 360 live videos on social media platforms. The article is elaborate and gives important details on commercial 360 live video streaming services.

It is important to evaluate the strategies employed by the researchers of the article to ascertain whether they are appropriate for data collection. One of the paper’s weaknesses that can be noted includes the sample size used to gather information for a conclusion. Using a sample size of 548 in an experiment might limit the possibility of achieving acceptable and valid results (Liu et al., 2019). The results obtained from the experiments might be true but might equally fail to account for the whole population. The sample size applied should be representative enough to guarantee the required or valid results. Equally, the author has concentrated on commercial live video streaming without concern for the network’s state in some locations. The research concludes by giving remarks on the topic of discussion, highlighting the essence of such techniques in promoting commercial media industry activities.

Observations and Recommendations as Presented

One of the observations made from the experiments and results of the article captures LIME’s role in promoting commercial video broadcasting for individuals. It is important to note that 360 live video streaming services require better bandwidth and might not deliver the exact quality as the real-time recording. The second observation that can be made is that the quality of video on Facebook or YouTube had a panoramic quality of no higher than 35% (Liu et al., 2019). 15% of the panoramic view is captured, which translates into a lower quality of approximately 240-360p. Live streaming on social media is afflicted by long stalls, with 47% being affected for over 5 seconds. One important recommendation made by the authors of the article is to use LIME to control and promote commercial video streaming services. Another important recommendation is to conduct rigorous research in the area to fill the gap of information that exists.

Relevant Topics and Concepts Learnt

It is important to examine the relevant topics covered in class that helped in understanding the various concepts on 360 live video streaming services. For instance, aspects of computer networking proved an important aspect of understanding commercial live video streaming. Equally, the topic of multimedia applications and communication had shed some light that proved important in understanding the research work presented (Liu et al., 2019). It is also vital to note that I had to learn concepts on digital media and its contribution to live streaming services. Also, understanding how live video can help communicate a powerful message was vital before reviewing the work presented. Another key concept that required researching is the issue of networks and bandwidth and how it affects operations for commercial live video streaming services. The article is detailed and can help communicate important concepts of commercial live video steaming.

Conclusion

To sum it up, the report is a critical summary of the work presented on Live 360 video streaming services for commercial purposes. The article has used an experimental approach to gather important information on the topic of discussion. It is vital to note that the controlled experiments completed allowed researchers to gather detailed information for a formidable discussion. However, the failure to highlight important aspects uh as the cost of streaming such videos, efficiently makes the report vague. Technology has been instrumental and will remain to be pivotal in the fight to improve video streaming services. With improved network infrastructure, commercial video streaming can change significantly.

References

Liu, X., Han, B., Qian, F. and Varvello, M., 2019, June. LIME: Understanding commercial 360° live video streaming services. In Proceedings of the 10th ACM Multimedia Systems Conference (pp. 154-164).