Twitter launches Live 360 video with Periscope

Better late than never, Twitter has finally joined the party of Live 360 video today with Periscope, finally completing the trinity of 360 video broadcasters along with Facebook and YouTube.

A cautious approach is being applied by Twitter, as the company says the feature will be available for all its users to view, but only a select few to broadcast, probably Twitter’s way of ironing out flaws if any and enticing people with the product first before moving forward with a wider launch.

360 Sunset in Florida. First ever #Periscope360 with @Brandee_Anthony https://t.co/AZWbnnT15S

— Alex Pettitt (@Alexpettitt) December 28, 2016

The very first Live 360 video, from influencer Alex Pettitt’s account showed him enjoying a sunset on the coast of Florida, is a stark contrast to Twitter’s current state in the industry.

If we could use one word to describe the year for Twitter, it would be 'unfortunate'.

Twitter has failed to innovate on a lot of fronts, playing catch up with other platforms, failing to rein in hatred and bullying on their platform, keeping their existing users happy, while at the same time trying to gather new ones.

The company was not doing well on the business front either, with their stock hitting a new low at least twice this year, and the exodus of key employees only made matters worse.

As the ill fated year is about to conclude, Twitter finally has something to be proud of, with Live 360 video on Periscope. This particular feature could witness higher adoption if Twitter succeeds at implementing it to broadcast the various sporting events it has partnered with recently for a much more interactive and immersive experience, much like Facebook did with Live during the Rio Olympics earlier this year.

Twitter does appear ecstatic at the prospect, as they made two blog post announcements, one on their blog and another more detailed one on Periscope’s blog, with a cheerful undertone. “Starting today, you’ll be able to join live 360 videos on Periscope and Twitter from some incredible broadcasters — getting front-row access at exclusive events, traveling to places across the globe, and getting up close with well-known personalities.” says the Periscope blog.

It also says that the feature should be expected by regular Twitter users within the next few weeks, so that’s something to look forward to. Although going Live in 360 could not be such an easy task for many as it requires a special camera attachment at the bottom of the phone, which we can speculate will not be cheap.

Image Source : TechCrunch

Then again, if Live 360 on Twitter takes off, who is to say people won’t be queuing up to purchase whatever piece of hardware it requires, regardless of the price, just as Snapchat did with Spectacles, portraying it as an attractive proposition and a must have.

We wish Twitter luck for the next year, and hope it’s kind to them.