RTMP vs WebRTC vs HLS : Live Video Streaming Protocols Compared

Video streaming has become an integral part of our daily lives. The most frequently used video protocols are RTMP, WebRTC, and HLS. RTMP was developed by Adobe to enable high-performance live streaming but lost its popularity due to the decline of Flash support. HLS is widely used for media distribution and supports adaptive bitrate streaming (ABR) for better quality and minimal buffering. However, it has higher latency compared to RTMP. WebRTC enables real-time video, audio, and data communication without plugins but faces scalability issues. Each protocol has its pros and cons, and the best choice depends on specific business requirements and customer expectations.