How To Broadcast Live Video From Your Mobile Phone with Bambuser

how to:How To Broadcast Live Video From Your Mobile Phone with Bambuser

Posted by Brannon Cullum in Mobiles Phones in Activism, Video for Change

One of the tools as the forefront of citizen media is Bambuser, an application that lets you do live video broadcasting from your mobile phone. The app has proven to be popular amongst Egyptians participating in demonstrations against the government--so much so that the government initially blocked it when people first took to the streets.

So what sets Bambuser apart from video sharing sites like YouTube, Vimeo, and Daily Motion? Content can be shared quickly, easily, and LIVE with viewers. Instead of recording a video and then going home and uploading it to another site, activists can provide a live feed of events on the ground as they happen. A Bambuser account can also be connected to your other social media accounts like Twitter, Foursquare, and Facebook so your friends and followers can be alerted when you start a new broadcast.

Bambuser works on over 250 mobile phones, including iPhone, Android, Samsung Bada, Symbian, and Windows.

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Step 1.

Point your browser to http://bambuser.com/. Before you sign up, make sure Bambuser is available for your mobile phone. Click the link to “Supported phones” under the sign up button.

Step 2.

If your phone supports the app, go ahead and click the “Sign up for free” button on the right-hand side. You can also sign up via your Facebook account.

On the sign up page, you’ll need to create a username and provide an email address and password. Share your country location and then click “Sign up.”

Step 3.

You’ll then be directed to the “Get started” page. If you have an iPhone, download the Bambuser app from the iTunes store.

For all other devices, there are three ways to install the Bambuser app on onto your mobile phone. You can install via SMS, your mobile phone browser, or bluetooth.

Step 4.

Once you’ve installed the app on your phone, you’re ready to login. Open the Bambuser app, choose “Connect,” select an access point (3G or WiFi), and then type in your username and passworld.

Tip!

Remember that your cell phone provider might charge you for the bandwidth required to upload video from your phone to the Bambuser servers and to broadcast over the GSM/3G network. Make sure to monitor how much data your are using on your plan and consider getting an unlimited data plan.

Step 5.

Record your live broadcast! It will be available on your public channel page (http://bambuser.com/channel/yourusername) for anyone to see.

Step 6.

Change your settings. On any Bambuser page, click the “Dashboard” tab at the top of the page. Under “Settings” you can add a profile picture, add a brief bio, and get the HTML code to embed your player on your own blog or site.

Step 7.

Under settings, configure other social media services you use like Twitter and Facebook to share updates when you are broadcasting on Bambuser. This way, people who follow you will know when you start sharing a live broadcast and can tune in.

Step 8.

Want to record a private broadcast? This broadcast will only be seen by you and won’t be posted to third party services like Twitter or Facebook. To use Bambuser in private mode, go to your settings in the app and change from public to private.