Version 1.0
Effective Date: 22nd September 2020
As part of our plans to actively engage with the community using social media platforms, live streaming will allow both members of staff and experienced members of the community to showcase the best of VATSIM UK.
To live stream on behalf of VATSIM UK, members must:
No controller rating is required to stream non-operational streams such as runway cams or spotter cams etc.
To ensure the streams are of a sufficient technical quality, members wishing to live stream in the Division must also:
VATSIM UK recommends that you stream in 1080p if possible. Information regarding bitrate requirements for YouTube can be accessed here.
You will need appropriate software in order to live stream on our behalf. We recommend Open Broadcaster Software (OBS) available at https://obsproject.com/
Members streaming a simulator must be using a platform that is approved for use on the VATSIM network. We encourage members to ensure that they are operating within the applicable licences of their chosen simulator.
To ensure we can deliver a wide range of content for our live streams without being dependent on one specific person, we have a pool of streamers who will be able to sign up to stream as and when needed by the Marketing Department.
If you wish to join the Streamer Pool, please submit a ticket to the helpdesk under ‘Marketing’ and we will get in touch with you. VATSIM UK reserves the right to refuse interests to join the team at its discretion.
Once a user has had their inquiry to join our Streamer Pool reviewed, they will be added to the Live Streaming channel in Discord. In this channel, the Marketing Director or the relevant appointed person(s), will post a rough itinerary of the intended streams that week and invite streamers to express their interest to stream these. Streams will be allocated on a first come, first served basis, and can be rostered if necessary to accommodate coverage of various events.
Planned streams will be added to the relevant VATSIM UK streaming platform in advance of the stream commencing. Once the streamer has signed up to conduct a stream, the Marketing Director or the relevant appointed person(s) will finalise the date and time of the stream with them, as well as discuss the contents of the stream and to remind them of our Streaming Guidelines (see Section 3.1).
For security reasons, the stream key (allowing you to stream to our YouTube channel) will not be provided by the Community Director or the relevant appointed person(s) until one hour before the stream begins. These details will be given to the streamer on Discord.
Streamers will be provided with any relevant graphics for their stream by the Marketing Director or the relevant appointed person(s) – this will usually consist of an overlay with VATSIM UK branding. Streamers should not place any additional branding, such as advertisement for your own channel, on the stream without permission from the Marketing Director or the relevant appointed person(s).
Firstly, you will need to add the source you are streaming – this will either be EuroScope or your Flight Simulator. If you are streaming a flight simulator, you will need to use ‘Game Capture’ – else, use ‘Window Capture’
Right click the ‘Sources’ box. Click Add, then Window Capture. This will present a dialog box.
When the dialog box appears, click ‘Create new’ and then name your window capture. We recommend naming it ‘Content’ to prevent confusion.
Select the window you wish to capture. If you are capturing EuroScope, make sure that you only have the main window open, with no dialog boxes. You will then be given a preview once again. Click ‘OK’. You may need to resize your window after loading it - double click on the image and then size it to your requirements.
You will then need to add the overlay provided by the Marketing Director or the relevant appointed person(s). This is the same as adding your source, but instead adding an image instead of a Window/Game Capture.
Please take care to ensure you don’t reveal any sensitive information such as passwords, email addresses or home addresses on stream when using various capture methods.
Once you have set up the display, you will then need to add the stream details into OBS. Click File, then Preferences, then Stream. Then, you should input the following settings:
Stream Type: Streaming Services Service: YouTube / YouTube Gaming Server Backup: YouTube ingest server Stream key: As sent by the Media Manager
Once you are ready to start, click Start Streaming in OBS.
As a member of the streamer pool, we expect that all streams conducted will be in full compliance with VATSIM UK, as well as VATSIM, policies. Any breach [of a policy] during a live stream will be handled using standard procedures, as well as potentially forfeiting your position within the Streamer Pool and losing the ability to contribute to our live streams. Please also be aware of the language and behaviour of other users that may be transmitting on the stream i.e. Discord or TeamSpeak. The online network conduct of the member during the stream/recording remains subject to the VATSIM Code of Conduct as stated in the VATSIM Code of Conduct A18 (B). Streams will be randomly spot- checked and moderated by various members of VATSIM staff. Any issues will be discussed with the individual, and if required, the stream may be removed from the live streaming platform.
As a Division, we have a wide variety of viewers with varying ages and levels of experience. Our aim with live streams is to allow the membership to see different aspects of the network than they may not normally be familiar with. When streaming on our behalf, we encourage streamers to deliver an informative stream that doesn’t just show what they are doing but also can provide more detailed information into why they are doing what they are doing.
If the streamer feels uncomfortable with this, we can try to implement a basic stream that will show the ‘Behind the Scope’ perspective of how we control on the network, with audio being directly sourced from AFV as opposed to any local audio which will reduce the need for any personal commentary or narrative throughout the stream.
Streamers are expected to respond to questions in the live chat as often as they can, so we can make our live streams as interactive as possible and engage our viewers. A member of Marketing Staff will also be present in the chat, posting as ‘VATSIM UK’ – however, they are solely there to moderate the chat and answer any general questions.