The Cue Player, part of every Primcast video stream

The live streaming player your viewers never have to think about

Paste it into your website and it gets out of the way: the picture starts, the quality fits the connection, the sound is in their language, and it plays the same on a phone in a train as on a laptop at home. And when you charge for the show, it takes the payment too.

Start a video stream Where it plays

What a viewer notices

Four moments where most players lose people, handled

  1. 01

    Pressing play

    Choose WebRTC and the picture arrives in under a second after it was filmed. When a network will not allow it, the player quietly switches to regular HLS instead of showing an error.

  2. 02

    A weak connection

    With several renditions transcoded, the player steps down to a lighter one before the picture freezes and back up when the line recovers. Viewers can still pick a fixed quality from the menu.

  3. 03

    Another language

    Send English and Spanish commentary as two audio tracks and a language menu appears. A link can open the player straight in the viewer's language.

  4. 04

    A server having a bad minute

    Through our video CDN the player starts from the CDN and, if that fails, goes to the origin server by itself, so a single fault does not end the broadcast for anyone.

Where it plays

Every modern browser, including the awkward cases

Chrome, Edge and Firefox play through hls.js. Safari on iPhone, iPad and Mac uses Apple's built-in HLS. The player chooses for itself, so you embed one thing.

  • Page builders and sandboxed embedsMany site builders lock an embed into a sandbox where ordinary web players go black on Apple devices. This player notices and plays there anyway.
  • Phones in silent modeAutoplay starts muted, as mobile browsers require, and the viewer taps for sound.
  • Big screensFullscreen and picture-in-picture are permitted by the embed code, so viewers can keep watching while they browse.
  • Your own player or appThe stream's HLS and DASH addresses are standard ones, so Video.js, Shaka or an app's own video player can play them if you would rather build your own.

When the content is valuable

Keep a paid event inside your own website

FairPlay and Widevine DRM

Turn DRM on for a stream and the video travels encrypted all the way to the viewer; only a browser holding a license can show it. FairPlay serves Safari on Mac, iPhone and iPad, Widevine serves Chrome, Edge, Firefox and Android, from one encrypted copy.

Both run on agreements in your name: Apple issues FairPlay credentials to content owners, Google does the same for Widevine, and you add each one in your control panel.

  • Only your websitesThe stream refuses to play when the embed is copied to someone else's page.
  • Only the countries you sell toA rights deal for one region stays in that region.
  • Only the links you signYour site hands each viewer a link that expires; the formats Wowza and Flussonic sites already use are accepted.
  • Only the viewers who paidThe built-in paywall checks every viewer's purchase before the picture starts, and stops the stream minutes after a refund.

Selling your stream

Charge for it without sending viewers to another website

Turn on the paywall and the player itself takes care of accounts, payment and access. People pay you, in your colours, and press play a moment later.

  • Tickets for one nightPut tickets on sale on a chosen day and stop sales when you like. Early buyers see a countdown, and the show opens for them right on time.
  • Passes and membershipsSell a day, a weekend or a whole season, or a membership charged every month or every year that members can stop whenever they want.
  • Several channels or a single filmSell all your channels together for one price, or put a price on one film from your library and keep the rest for members.
  • Presents, coupons and tipsFans can buy a show for a friend, who receives a code by e-mail. You can also hand out free or discount coupons and accept tips of any size.
  • Card or PayPal, straight to youLink your own Stripe and PayPal accounts and the money lands there. Primcast does not take a percentage.
  • Looks like your brandYour logo, colour, name and a short welcome greet people on every paywall screen and in every receipt.

Each viewer gets a page with their purchases and receipts and can watch on as many devices as you allow. You get a daily sales chart, how many members joined or left, and spreadsheets of every sale and viewer.

Phones and TVs

Bought once, watched on the phone, the laptop and the TV

Whatever device a viewer paid on, the same sign-in opens it everywhere else. Purchases made inside your apps are confirmed with each app store under your own developer accounts.

  • iPhone, iPad and Android appsYour app charges through the App Store or Google Play, as both require, and the paywall confirms the purchase, then keeps up with renewals and refunds.
  • Roku and Fire TVRoku Pay and Amazon purchases are confirmed in the same way, so a membership started on the couch also works on the website.
  • A code instead of a passwordThe TV shows a few letters; viewers enter them on their phone and the TV signs in by itself.
  • For your developersA documented API and a light JavaScript SDK cover sign-in, offers, payment, codes, store receipts and playback. You or your app studio build the apps; we run what they talk to.

Getting it on your page

Three steps, and the second one is copying

1

Send your stream

Point OBS, vMix, a hardware encoder or a phone app at your Primcast stream over RTMP, SRT or WebRTC.

2

Copy the embed code

Your control panel shows a ready iframe for the stream, already allowing fullscreen and picture-in-picture.

3

Paste it where the video goes

WordPress, Wix, Squarespace or plain HTML: anywhere an iframe is accepted, the player works.

Asked often

About the player

Does the player cost extra?

No. It comes with the stream: a Primcast video plan or Cue on your own server both serve it, and there is nothing to license separately.

Will it show ads or another company's logo?

No. The player shows your stream and its own controls, nothing else.

How close to live can it play?

Regular HLS suits most broadcasts. Low-latency HLS was measured at about six seconds behind live. WebRTC plays in under a second, for when the audience talks back.

Can I protect a pay-per-view event with DRM?

Yes. Switch on FairPlay, Widevine or both for that stream, then sell the tickets with the player's own paywall or keep your ticketing site and its signed links. A DRM stream plays over standard HLS and DASH; WebRTC and low-latency HLS stay off for it.

Does it work in a mobile app?

An app can show the same embed in a web view, or play the stream's HLS address in its native player, which is what most apps do. Apps can also sell through the App Store, Google Play, Roku or Amazon and let the paywall confirm each purchase.

Does Primcast take a cut of what I sell?

No. Payments go into your own Stripe or PayPal account, or through your own app store accounts, and Primcast takes no percentage of any sale.

Can fans buy a show as a present?

Yes, for any ticket or pass you mark as giftable. The friend receives a code by e-mail and redeems it with their own account.

Can viewers choose the audio language?

Yes, whenever your stream carries more than one audio track. They pick from a menu in the corner of the picture.

Ready to put your stream in front of people?

Pick a hosted video plan and the player is waiting in your panel, or run Cue on a server of your own and serve it yourself.

Video streaming plans Cue on your own server