External studio streaming, or RTMP ingest, allows you to control a Wistia webinar event through other advanced streaming tools (e.g., OBS) and have more flexibility over your stream.
Note
External studio streaming differs from simulcasting, which lets you stream your webinar to other platforms.
Use external studio to control a Wistia webinar from your own broadcasting software over RTMP. Use simulcasting to push your Wistia webinar to platforms like YouTube, LinkedIn, or Facebook.
Connect external studio
On the webinar overview page, open the "Edit event info" modal.
In the Event info modal, open the "Settings" tab and select the "External studio" event type. Wistia will display an RTMP URL and a Stream Key, which you'll copy and paste into your broadcasting software (e.g., OBS). The RTMP URL is the same for every Wistia customer and doesn't change between streams; your Stream Key is unique to you. Treat your Stream Key like a password—anyone with it can broadcast to your event, so don't share it.
If you’re unsure where to paste this information, contact your broadcasting software's support team for assistance. Once connected, you can go live and end your stream from the other platform.
If needed, you can disable the external studio in the same modal before going live in Wistia.
Tip
For the best balance of quality and stability, set your broadcasting software's output to: resolution 1920×1080, bitrate 2,000–8,000 kbps, and frame rate 30 or 60 fps (25/29.9 is common in Europe).
External studio event room
When streaming via RTMP Ingest, the event room will look a bit different than a typical webinar in Wistia.
When streaming via RTMP Ingest, hosts can:
Activate and moderate Chat.
Activate and moderate Q&A.
When streaming via RTMP Ingest, hosts cannot:
Bring questions on stage.
Manage other streams through the Event room (i.e., screen-sharing, managing panelists, and presenting media).
Activate and moderate Polls.
Display mid-event CTAs.
End an external studio event
When you're ready to end your event, click "End event" in the Wistia event room while you're still streaming in your broadcasting software. This will ensure that your stream will not be disrupted in Wistia. End the stream in your broadcasting software, then take a look at your event stats.
Running into trouble? Let us know at [email protected]!