The Cost of Live Streaming a Judo Event With Your Mobile Phone

Interesting to note that everyone thinks that broadcasting a live stream to youtube is easy, but is it really? In this article we will look at whether it is feasible to get 4 mobile phones, to stream 4 different videos to youtube, for a wider audience.

Why is it important?

Being able to live stream a Judo event is great for anyone looking to support their mate or close ones when they cant be physically present to support. It might be their first Judo tournament and a hurdle in  removing the fear of going to competition. It might be a Judoka's 50th Judo tournament and looking to make a statement about being the strongest. Either way, people are looking to support their friends/family and can do so by watching a live stream.

A short survey conducted on my facebook page showed that people much preferred a decent quality stream with no dropouts in connection over other qualities offered.

Our test below will determine whether it can be done.

The Test

3 different mobile phones were taken to get the file size of a 5minute video recorded in 720p, which is the lowest decent quality I have selected. I will take the average of the file sizes, and the maximum to give a range of data required to stream the actual event. The brand name of the mobile phones are not released.

Results

Mobile 1: 255mb - [5min - 720p]

Mobile 2: 378mb - [5min - 720p]

Mobile 3: 442mb - [5min - 720p]

Average = 359mb - [5min - 720p]

Highest  = 442mb[5min - 720p]

Lowest = 255mb [5min - 720p]

Lets calculate the average expected usage:

The data usage for 4 mobile phone per day (8hours) on average, would use: 4 * 8 * 60 * 359 / 5 = 137 856mb = 137GB per day

274GB for 4 mobiles over 2 days on average.

Lets now calculate the highest expected usage

The data usage for 4 mobile phone per day (8hours), would use: 4 * 8 * 60 * 442 / 5 = 169 728‬ mb = 170GB per day

340GB for 4 mobiles over 2 days for the highest usage.

If you're using a portable wifi hotspot or someone's phone, data charges will apply:

Looking at Vodafone's largest data plan, 35GB roughly costs $50AUD.

This means that you will looking at about $390 - $500AUD per event.

Conclusion

The simple test shows how much data is consumed when taking a simple video. For a 2 day Judo event, it might take 274GB - 340GB worth of data.

Also good to note that other factors such as the actual cost of 4 mobile phones and whether the mobile phone's battery can handle long term broadcasting arent discussed. Other factors that affect the cost include: upload speed, price of the stands to hold the phone, as well as the relevant attachments.

From my experience, mobile phones battery can not handle long videos even while simultaneously being charged due to heating

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