Video Services will work with your staff to make sure they understand how to connect to the streaming server for your webcast.

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Many of the preparation steps for video on demand also apply to webcasting. But because webcasting is LIVE, there is less tolerance and time to resolve technical difficulties.

First, you should really ask yourself if a webcast is absolutely necessary. What is unique about your event that requires the audience to join in live? Most webcasts are archived for later viewing, so is there a compelling reason to show the event live, also?

• contact ITS Video Services well in advance of your event (at least two weeks) to make sure the streaming server and support staff will be available
• determine the webcast audience (on- vs off-campus streaming options are different)
• decide how the live program will be received by ITS Video Services (encoding done on laptop on location or CATV signal sent to Video Services for encoding)
• identify your webcast crew: who will do the video/audio capture (departmental staff? ITS Video Services staff? other?); is a moderator needed (for email or chat feedback)?
• reserve the equipment needed during the webcast
• validate that the program will meet University acceptable use guidelines [see Chapter 19 (Acceptable Use of Information Technology Resources) in the University Operations Manual]
• obtain the necessary rights for any copyrighted materials (such as music, art work, or books) that will be used in the webcast
• obtain necessary rights from the presenters to record and broadcast event [see Sample Talent Release Form]
• promote the webcast (why have a party if no one comes?)

Don't skimp on your support staffing. If something goes wrong during the webcast, you will need the extra staff to do quick diagnostics and adjustments.

It’s not unusual for a live event to be saved for later availability as video-on-demand. You should determine this well before the event, so that appropriate steps can be taken to ensure that the webcast can be saved for encoding in your choice of video-on-demand formats. You should also review the video-on-demand page.

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You will need to prepare a webpage where viewers will go to receive the webcast. It acts as an advertisement before the event, the view site during the event, and it could be the location to find the video-on-demand version after the event. Below is the text from a sample webcast page. Replace the text in Magenta with the information relevant to your event. Note the use of an existing video on demand file for viewers to test their player before the event starts.

Viewers may get an error message generated by their player if they try to start viewing the webcast before it starts. You should alert them of this possibility or consider starting your live stream before the event using a "stay tuned" message or do not make the link available until you start the webcast.

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Do any setup well in advance of the start of the event. For simple setups (just one camera, one microphone, and an encoding laptop), plan for at least one half hour setup. If the setup is more complex, start sooner, allowing time for testing.

Plan on also recording the event to tape. This will provide a backup, in case something goes wrong during the live event. This will also give you a good quality master from which to make different video on demand versions of the event.

Be familiar with all of the equipment that will be used in the webcast. Test audio and video capture, test the encoding laptop, test the network connection. Make sure the camera and laptop won't timeout during the webcast. Make sure that batteries are fresh and that you have spares.

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ITS Video Services will charge its standard hourly work rate of $57.50 per person for webcasting during normal working hours. This includes the time to prepare for the webcast and being present in the Video Services studio during the webcast. For after-hours events, the rate is $72.50 per person per hour. This per hour staff charge will cover the expenses of using the streaming server.