Dalai Lama uses video streaming to reach global audience

Stuart Corner
Wednesday, 02 May 2007 08:22

Your IT - Home IT

Wherever he goes the 14th Dalai Lama attracts capacity crowds, but now thanks to video streaming technology those unable to hear and see His Holiness in the flesh were able to enjoy his most recent appearance via the Internet and a web browser.

VX30, a Maui, Hawaii based developer of Java-based streaming video software donated its Live Broadcast technology to stream the Dalai Lama's teaching delivered his teachings on the Island of Maui, on April 24th and 25th.

VX30 teamed up with Maui Community College, Sun Microsystems and Stanford University to broadcast the two-day event live over the Internet to a worldwide audience. According to VX30, unlike other streaming video products on the market, its software does not require an end-user to have a media player or go through the hassle of downloading, upgrading or maintaining one. "The VX30 Live Broadcast Solution is a stand-alone Java application that can be deployed on any host that supports Java. There are currently builds for all the major platforms including Solaris, Linux, FreeBSD, Windows and
OS X," the company says. It uses VX30's universal video applet to decode the video stream in the client's browser.

"We asked VX30 to help us stream the event using their Live Broadcast Solution, not only because of their software's universal reach, but also because of VX30's image quality. VX30 and Sun Microsystems provided the Live Broadcast Platform capable of handling unlimited viewers worldwide in collaboration with Stanford University to support the Dalai Lama's event once the video feed was created and sent out from Maui Community College," said Clyde Sakamoto, chancellor at Maui Community College.VX30 said that the event would be available "for a limited time" at http://www.tibetfund.org/dalai-lama-maui.html iTWire was unable to access it at press time.