Live Streaming

SideoutCam can stream the game live, with the scoreboard and sponsors, to YouTube, Facebook, or any RTMP / RTMPS service (Twitch, Restream, …). Streaming is separate from recording: you can stream, record, or both.

The stream uses the camera phone’s cellular connection. You need a good signal: about 3.5 Mbps upload for 720p, or 6 Mbps for 1080p. The quality adjusts automatically on a weak connection. Choose the quality in Home ▸ Live Streaming ▸ Quality.

Setting up

Home ▸ Live Streaming shows each team’s setup (use Team at the top to switch between your teams).

YouTube

In Accounts, sign in to YouTube with the account that manages the channel.
The channel must be enabled for live streaming. The first time, YouTube can take up to 24 hours to approve it (YouTube Studio ▸ Create ▸ Go live).

That’s all. When you go live, Sideout creates the broadcast for you (Unlisted, Sports category, titled like “20261004 Westview vs. Eastside”) and gives you a link to share. No stream key needed.

An optional YouTube backup key (YouTube Studio ▸ Create ▸ Go live ▸ Stream) is only used if creating the broadcast fails.

Facebook

In Facebook Live Producer, choose where to post (your profile, a Page, or a Group), pick Streaming software, and turn on Persistent stream key.
Copy the key. In Sideout, go to Accounts ▸ Stream Keys ▸ Add Stream Key, choose Facebook, and paste it.
In My Teams ▸ the team ▸ Live Streaming (or Home ▸ Live Streaming), pick the key for the team.

A persistent key stays the same every time, so you only do this once. Facebook may show a preview first: tap Go Live in Facebook to make it public.

Other services (Custom RTMP)

Add a Custom RTMP stream key with the service’s server address (e.g. rtmps://…/app) and stream key, then pick it for the team.

Going live

Tap Go Live on the camera screen. If the team has more than one destination set up, Go Live… lets you pick YouTube, Facebook or Custom.

Go Live in SideoutTally uses the destination you last went live with (or the first one set up). The button shows which.

Between sets, the stream stays up and shows a card: “Starting soon”, “Waiting for Set 2 to start”, or “Final”. These cards are only on the stream, never in your recordings.
When you pause, viewers see “Stream paused momentarily” with the game and the reason (e.g. “Westview timeout”) or your message.
Share link (YouTube) gives you the link to send to family and friends, on either phone.
End Stream finishes the broadcast. Recording isn’t affected.

Weak signal and dropped connections

Weak signal: when the connection can’t keep up, the stream lowers its quality by itself, and viewers see a notice across the top: “Weak network signal. Stream may appear choppy and could stop. Stream will remain active in case signal strength improves.” It disappears once the signal recovers. Both phones show Weak signal next to LIVE. Your recording is never affected.
Connection lost: Sideout keeps trying to reconnect every 10 seconds, and both phones show Reconnecting — signal lost. On YouTube the broadcast stays open, so viewers keep the same link and the stream picks up where it left off when the signal returns. Tap End Stream to stop trying.
If SideoutCam has to restart mid-game, Go Live again for the same game continues the same YouTube broadcast and link.
YouTube’s view of the stream: while you’re live on YouTube (signed in through Accounts), the Live row on both phones shows how YouTube rates the stream and how many are watching, e.g. “YouTube: Good · 23 watching”, checked every 30 seconds (the same rating as Stream health in YouTube Studio, so you don’t need Studio open). It turns orange or red with YouTube’s reason (“YouTube says: Video bitrate is low”) when YouTube rates it OK or Bad. If it says Good while a viewer sees a spinner, the stream is fine and the hold-up is on their connection: they can pick a lower quality (gear icon) or rewind a few seconds. Not shown for Facebook or stream-key streams.
Phone too hot: pause the stream with a message for viewers, then resume on the same link once it cools. See Troubleshooting.
If the stream can’t start at all (for example, a stream key was rejected), Sideout tells you why instead of retrying.