What is streaming? How do I stream? Is there a river involved? YIKES! If you have had some of these thoughts recently, don’t worry. You are not alone.

 

An official definition of streaming is a method of transmitting or receiving data (especially video and audio material) over a computer network as a steady, continuous flow, allowing playback to proceed while subsequent data is being received. Basically it is accessing content over the internet.

 

In 2017, penetration of streaming media devices reached 40%, proving that Americans are changing they way they access media. Reports show that consumer spending on subscription based streaming for 2017 totaled $9.55 billion. Although the highest percentage of connected TV devices for 2017 was gaming consoles, devices such as Amazon Fire, Roku and Apple TV were about 25% of the connected devices. The video ‘Streaming Devices’, compliments of cnet.com, offers an overview of these three devices including some of their pros and cons. It is also a great source for streaming platform research.