YouTube rolls out HDR for livestreams

HDR is finally coming to livestreaming content on YouTube.

More than four years after rolling out HDR support for pre-recorded video content uploaded to the platform, YouTube announced on Tuesday that it has launched HDR for livestreams as well.

With this announcement, YouTube becomes the first major platform to enable HDR quality content on its livestreams.

In basic terms, HDR — which stands for high-dynamic range — video has a broader range of colors and higher contrast. An HDR video’s whites will be brighter and blacks will be darker. The overall image ends up being much more vibrant than that of standard video.

On the left: standard video. On the right: HDR video. Credit: YOUTUBE

In fact, unless you’re a videophile, you are much more likely to notice a dramatic difference between HDR and non-HDR video than between 4k and 1080p video. YouTube, by the way, rolled out 4k livestreaming in 2016. So, again, the wait for HDR livestreams was years in the making! It’s a big deal.

Viewers can stream HDR content on any supported mobile device, TV, or streaming set-top box or stick. YouTube has provided creators with an outline of what they need in order to livestream in HDR as well.

This is the second time this month that YouTube has launched some big new features for the company’s livestreaming features.

Last week, YouTube rolled out new updates to its Premiere feature, which allows creators to air pre-recorded uploaded video as a one-time livestream when it’s first made public. The new features allowed creators to air a teaser trailer or countdown before the video’s debut. The update also provided creators with the ability to livestream before the video’s premiere and seamlessly transition into the newly uploaded video after the live portion of the stream ends.

YouTube is clearly putting some new focus on livestreaming, perhaps due to the growth of other live video competitors, like Twitch. Streaming HDR video is an important move in continuing to set itself apart.