Live streaming is on the rise, you can see it being rapidly adopted by internet giants like Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Twitter and Snapchat. Microsoft recently announced the release of live events in Teams (currently in public preview), which will enable organizations to schedule and stream live to large audiences.

With live events, you get the feel and control of the attendee experience, while connecting live with a large audience.

Live events production type

Quick start: With quick start, you can easily create events and invite remote presenters to participate in the stream.

External encoder (coming soon): With the external encoder, you can setup live events using an external hardware or software encoder via Microsoft Stream. External encoder is used for people and organizations that have their own sound equipment, like their own cameras, microphones and mixers.

Event group roles

Broadcasting a live event usually takes at least a couple of people there to assist in making sure the event runs smoothly from beginning to end. Live events in Teams provides multiple event group roles to help spread the burden of running a successful live streaming event.

The event group roles are:

• Organizer – The organizer schedules a live event and sets up the correct permissions for attendees, the event group and who will manage the live events. Learn more about the organizer’s checklist here.
• Producer – The producer controls the media sources used in live events and is responsible for giving viewers the best presentation possible.
• Presenter – The presenter presents audio, video or another screen, as well as moderating the Q&A section of the event.
• Attendee – The attendee is a viewer that watches the event, either live or on-demand. The attendee can be allowed to anonymously participate, or can be required to authenticate before viewing the event.

What’s needed to create live events in Microsoft Teams

• Office 365 Enterprise E3 or E5 license.
• Permission to create live events in Microsoft Stream (for external encoder events).
• Someone from within your organization.
• Meeting scheduling needs to be turned on in the Team meeting policy.

Attending live events

If you’re attending a live event via quick start events, you can be an anonymous user, or an Office 365 user with any license that includes Teams.

If you’re attending a live event via external encoder events, you’ll need an Office 365 license that includes Stream.

Getting started with live events

If you’re looking for more information on getting started, check out this Microsoft article on live events.

How can your organization benefit from using live events in Microsoft Teams?

• Bring in field or industry specialists to offer outreach events or clinics.
• Broadcast keynote speakers or important live events.

There are many more benefits that your organization could get from using live events in Microsoft Teams. How will your organization use live events?