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Tumblr Live on Web!
Hello, Tumblr. Tumblr Live is coming to your desktop computers. If you’re in the US, you can now both stream and watch on web.
Tumblr Live on web means you’ll be able to use streaming software to share your screen on a stream. OBS (open broadcaster software), for example, enables you to stream to specific locations using multiple inputs like your webcam and a virtual camera—think side-by-side face cam and screen recording on a gaming stream. Having OBS integration really blows open a world of possibilities for Tumblr Live. Learn more about hosting a stream using OBS here.
Your ballpit awaits! What will you stream? Furby lengthening lessons? The Last of Us Pt. 1 replay? The Locked Tomb book club? Frog costume felting? Zhongli live draw? The Sims Seinfeld reenactment?
vierdz
Why are there so many angry comments on this post already? I’ve been wanting to find a place to stream art that isn’t Twitch or Picarto.
psshaw
Couple factors I’ve seen brought up!
- It’s not in line with the spirit of Tumblr and, if successfully implemented, will change the landscape of the site. Streaming is a big moneymaker and online gentrifier. We can already see from the current Live strip that the people using it are rarely native Tumblr artists, but rather influencers from other platforms who want to expand their reach. They have no interest in the traditional use of the site.
- We know how apps have historically used algorithms coupled with video. Instagram is a corporatized ruin dominated by people who have time to make Reels of everything. It would be nice to have a social platform left that didn’t jumble content non-chronologically and leave non-video artists in the dust.
- There’s some talk about how the Live stream provider tracks and sells your location and info. This is a little funny because, by using phone apps, you are usually agreeing to a TOS that lets that app track and sell you. The solution here is actually to use desktop browsers more!
- Tumblr won’t let you turn off Live indefinitely, which is a huge red flag for their intentions for the service. The strip is stationed at the top of the dashboard, which implies they think it will become an important part of the Tumblr experience. There’s offering a service, and then there’s pivoting your model and being surprised that your userbase isn’t here for watching 20-year-olds make funny faces in their bedrooms.
