Live streaming: What happens between OBS and your viewers?

You click “Start Streaming” in OBS. A few seconds later, someone on the other side of the world can watch your broadcast.

It feels almost instant, but the video has already passed through several stages: OBS encodes it, a streaming server receives it, a CDN distributes it, and a player turns it back into video on the viewer’s screen.

So, what is live streaming from a technical point of view, and what actually happens between OBS and your audience?

How does live streaming work?

A typical live stream follows a route like this:

OBS → RTMP or SRT → ingest server → CDN → HLS or LL-HLS → viewers

OBS is where the broadcast begins. It takes video from a camera, screen, or other source, combines it with audio, and encodes everything into a format suitable for transmission.

If you're learning how to use OBS for live streaming, this is where settings such as resolution, frame rate, bitrate, and encoder come into play. They affect both picture quality and the amount of data you need to upload.

Once the broadcast starts, OBS sends the stream to an ingest server, usually via RTMP or SRT.

RTMP remains a common option for sending video from an encoder to streaming infrastructure. SRT is designed for reliable transmission even when network conditions are less than ideal.

From the ingest server to the viewer

Receiving the stream is only half the job. It still needs to reach the audience.

The incoming video can be prepared for delivery through HLS or LL-HLS. HLS is widely supported by browsers and devices, while LL-HLS is designed to reduce the delay between the live event and what viewers see.

Then the CDN takes over.

Instead of making thousands of viewers connect to one origin server, a CDN distributes the stream across its infrastructure. This becomes especially useful when the audience grows or viewers are located in different regions.

The final step happens in the video player, where the stream is decoded and displayed.

How to start live streaming

For anyone figuring out how to start live streaming or how to do live streaming, the basic setup is relatively simple.

You need a video source, a microphone if required, OBS or another encoder, a stable internet connection, and somewhere to send the stream.

For a basic broadcast, an existing platform may be enough. For a company that wants to stream through its own website or application, the setup is different.

If you're researching how to create a live streaming website, think beyond the website itself. You also need an ingest endpoint, video delivery infrastructure, a compatible player, and enough capacity for the expected audience.

Which platform is best for live streaming?

The answer depends on what you're trying to do.

If you simply want to go live and reach an existing audience, platforms such as YouTube can handle most of the infrastructure for you. If you're wondering how to turn on live streaming on YouTube, you can set up a broadcast in YouTube Studio and connect OBS using the streaming details provided by the platform.

Businesses may have different priorities. They might want the broadcast on their own website, more control over the player, or the ability to build live video into an existing product.

So when comparing what is the best live streaming service or which platform is best for live streaming, look at your actual use case rather than the platform name. Audience location, latency, supported protocols, integration options, and expected traffic all matter.

How much does live streaming cost?

There is no fixed answer to how much does live streaming cost.

A small stream can be relatively simple: a computer, camera, microphone, OBS, and an internet connection. A larger broadcast may also require dedicated streaming infrastructure and CDN delivery.

Audience size makes a major difference. Streaming to 50 viewers and streaming to 50,000 viewers create very different traffic volumes.

It is also worth considering bitrate, broadcast duration, storage, recording, and any additional services you plan to use.

Live streaming with Falconcloud

Falconcloud CDN Live Streaming is built for businesses that want to deliver live video through their own websites and applications.

You can send a stream from OBS, FFmpeg, or another compatible encoder using RTMP or SRT. Falconcloud then delivers it to viewers through HLS or LL-HLS, with CDN infrastructure handling distribution.

Optional restreaming is also available when the same broadcast needs to be sent to external platforms.

This setup can be used for online events, webinars, education, product presentations, media projects, and other live broadcasts without tying the viewing experience to a specific platform or player.

FAQ

Why is there a delay in live streaming?

Some delay is normal. Encoding, network transmission, video processing, CDN delivery, and player buffering all take time. Low-latency technologies such as LL-HLS can help reduce it.

Do I need a CDN for live streaming?

Not necessarily for a small broadcast. But as the audience grows or becomes geographically distributed, a CDN helps deliver the stream without relying on a single server to serve every viewer.

Conclusion

A live stream may look simple from the viewer’s side, but there is a lot happening after you press “Start Streaming.”

OBS prepares the video, RTMP or SRT carries it to the streaming infrastructure, HLS or LL-HLS prepares it for playback, and a CDN helps deliver it to the audience.

Once you understand that chain, it becomes much easier to choose the right setup — and to find the problem when a stream doesn’t work as expected.

Ready to set up your live streaming infrastructure? Sign in to your Falconcloud account and get started.