RTMP / RTMPS

What is it?

RTMP (Real-Time Messaging Protocol) is the most common "language" a streaming app or camera uses to send a live video to a streaming service. Think of it as the delivery truck that carries your live video from your phone or computer to the platform's front door.

RTMPS is the same thing, but the connection is encrypted — like the same truck, but with a locked, sealed container so nobody can peek inside on the way.

Practical example

When a streamer opens OBS and pastes a "Stream URL" and "Stream Key" from YouTube, they are almost always using RTMP. The moment they press "Start Streaming," OBS begins pushing their video over RTMP to YouTube's servers, and a few seconds later viewers see it on the watch page.

Key things to know (non-technical)

• It is an upload protocol: it carries video from the creator to the platform, not from the platform to viewers.
• Every major platform (YouTube, Twitch, Facebook, TikTok via tools) accepts it, which is why it became the universal standard.
• It is old but reliable — the "USB cable" of live streaming: not glamorous, works everywhere.
• Its weakness: it does not handle bad internet connections gracefully (newer options like SRT do this better).

In Tupic Live

Tupic Live can use RTMP(S) as the standard way creators push their broadcast into the platform, and as the bridge for sending the same broadcast out to destinations like YouTube Live or Twitch (simulcast).