Comments on: Confessions of an Internet Pastor – Broadcasting Live or Taped?

By: vince

vince — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 23:18:19 +0000

I like Limelight a lot….i have had good experience with them and their customer service is lights out!

live is definitely a hectic endeavor.

By: human3rror

human3rror — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 18:21:03 +0000

but it's so yummy.

By: human3rror

human3rror — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 03:31:04 +0000

thanks for sharing! how you liking limelight?

By: Ryan

Ryan — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 03:24:50 +0000

Hey there…

At MBC we currently stream 4 services on Sundays live, but are looking into what it would look like to do rebroadcasts throughout the week, but up until now (with a few exceptions) we've only done live streaming.

We use Limelight for the streaming (and Adobe Media Encoder) and have two IC staff members in the broadcast room running the admin console of the IC as well as the video switcher, in addition to monitoring the chat room. We also have a sound technician in an adjacent room mixing sound specifically for the Internet Campus.

It's definitely an exciting/hectic time on Sundays, but we think that the "live experience" is worth offering, and we'll likely always do the services live. But one of the main reasons we want to add a few rebroadcasts is to hit other time zones. In particular, we have a large number of troops overseas who we'd like to be able to offer services at a time that works better for them.

Anyhow, just thought I'd weigh in Definitely think it just depends on your church and what you think works best for you.

By: stephenbateman

stephenbateman — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 20:01:04 +0000

Sort of echoing Aussie, I think regular joe sunday can be just as well recorded as live. I mean it's live to them isn't it? I don't think anyone will be offended when they discover that the pixels they were just watching weren't reflecting an actual human 2.6 seconds before.

But for bigger events, especially scattered across the same city, it might be valuable to produce something live. But for big events, quality is key. Augh!

By: AussieSim

AussieSim — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 16:50:03 +0000

We do a mix of both.

We've pushed our 5pm service 1 week ahead, and then tape that whole service – it is then edited and combined with taped spots from our Church Online Pastor on Monday's. This has allowed us to offer 4 services online each week, and we'll be moving to 6-7 in 2010.

However we also broadcast many of our larger events live- baptism's (each campus is streamed LIVE so you can choose which campus to watch), outreach events, one off services such as Easter/Christmas, and we also have a very basic bi-weekly 'Coffee' with the Church Online pastor.

We've found the mix to work really well. Live events definitely have a fun feel, but the pre-recorded allows the flexibility.

By: vince

vince — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 16:05:00 +0000

heck yeah…roll with whatcha got and make it happen!

By: Deltron Echo | Gateway Church Digerati

Deltron Echo | Gateway Church Digerati — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 14:54:40 +0000

[...] Jump on over to ChurchCrunch.com to engage in the conversation of live or taped content for church online. Filed under Uncategorized | Comment (0) [...]

By: human3rror

human3rror — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 11:41:04 +0000

very cool. thanks for sharing ben!

it'll be great to meet up this jan…

By: benrwoodard

benrwoodard — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 11:38:28 +0000

We have been doing live broadcasts for a year and a half now. Our "broadcast" budget is very small but our goal was a little different as well. We had several people who could not make it to church and this was a way to include them. We purchased a $300 camera, used my computer, and tapped into SermonStudio.net ($45/month). Our connection speed is on a simple DSL line so the quality of our video is not great but it serves our purpose. We are currently working for a more interactive experience by using social media. The answer to your question….For us 'Live' fits into our purpose and goals.