Livepeer is a decentralised video streaming network that aims to make video content more accessible and affordable for everyone. Launched in 2017, it was the first fully decentralised live video streaming network protocol, offering an alternative to traditional centralised streaming services like YouTube and Twitch.
The platform works by connecting video creators who need their content processed with computer operators who provide the computing power. This peer-to-peer approach can reduce streaming costs by up to 50-90% compared to traditional cloud providers while maintaining high quality and reliability.
TLDR
Decentralised video infrastructure: Livepeer is a decentralised network for limitless video computing, enabling AI processing and transcoding jobs to power the future of video.
Cost-effective streaming: Designed to make streaming more reliable while reducing costs, Livepeer acts as a decentralised marketplace for developers building applications that integrate live video and transcoding providers.
Ethereum-based protocol: Built on Ethereum, it aims to provide a blockchain-based alternative to centralised streaming services, giving developers freedom to innovate and creators independence from big platforms.
Native token (LPT): The Livepeer Token (LPT) is the protocol token of the Livepeer network, used for staking and network governance rather than direct payments.
What is Livepeer (LPT)?
Livepeer creates a global network where anyone can contribute computing power to help process video content. When someone wants to stream a video, instead of using expensive centralised servers, the content gets distributed across this network of independent computers.
The magic happens through video transcoding: the process of converting video files into different formats and quality levels so they can be watched on different devices and internet speeds. Traditional streaming services handle this with massive, expensive data centres. Livepeer does it through thousands of smaller computers around the world.
This approach benefits everyone involved. Content creators get cheaper streaming costs, computer operators earn money for contributing their resources, and viewers get the same high-quality experience they expect from streaming platforms.
The network is particularly valuable for developers building video applications, as they can tap into Livepeer's infrastructure without setting up their own expensive video processing systems.
Who created Livepeer?
Livepeer was founded in 2017 by Doug Petkanics and Eric Tang, both entrepreneurial software engineers who had been long-time collaborators before starting the project.
Doug Petkanics serves as CEO and brings over 10 years of experience as an entrepreneur and software developer. Before Livepeer, he was a co-founder and VP of Engineering at Wildcard and attended the University of Pennsylvania.
Eric Tang, who serves as CTO, co-founded Livepeer to utilise blockchain technology to reduce costs and increase efficiency in video streaming. The platform has grown significantly under their leadership, now featuring more than 70,000 GPUs that encode videos for large platforms.
The founding team recognised that video streaming was becoming increasingly expensive and centralised, with a few big companies controlling most of the infrastructure. They set out to democratise video streaming by creating a decentralised alternative that could compete on both cost and performance.
How does Livepeer work?
Video transcoding network
The core of Livepeer is its video transcoding network. When someone uploads a video, it needs to be converted into multiple formats and quality levels (like 1080p, 720p, 480p) so it can be watched on different devices and internet connections.
Instead of using one large data centre, Livepeer distributes this work across thousands of computers worldwide. These computers, called "orchestrators," compete to provide the best service at the lowest cost.
Staking and network security
Computer operators who want to join the network must stake LPT tokens as a form of security deposit. This ensures they'll do good work; if they provide poor service or try to cheat, they can lose their staked tokens.
Users can also "delegate" their LPT tokens to trusted orchestrators, earning a share of the rewards while helping secure the network without running their own hardware.
Economic incentives
The network creates a marketplace where video processing jobs go to the orchestrators offering the best combination of price, quality, and reliability. This competition naturally drives down costs while maintaining high standards.
Payments for video processing are typically made in ETH or other cryptocurrencies, while LPT tokens are used for staking and governance rather than direct transactions.
What Is LPT?
LPT is a staking token in the Livepeer Network that helps reduce costs for video broadcasters. Unlike many crypto tokens, LPT isn't primarily used for payments, it also provides:
- Network security: Orchestrators must stake LPT tokens to participate in the network, ensuring they provide reliable service.
- Governance rights: LPT holders can vote on important network decisions and protocol upgrades.
- Delegation rewards: Token holders can delegate their LPT to orchestrators and earn a portion of the fees those orchestrators collect.
- Work token: LPT represents the right to perform work on the network and earn fees from video processing jobs.
The token follows an inflationary model where new LPT is created to reward network participants, but this inflation is balanced by the value created through network usage and growth.
When considering LPT investment, it's important to understand that the token's value is closely tied to the network's adoption and usage. As more developers and content creators use Livepeer's infrastructure, the demand for LPT staking and the overall network value should increase accordingly.