Australian online broadcaster Viocorp reached a new level of global online audience yesterday as it broadcast the Catholic Church's Palm Sunday ceremony live from the Vatican to hundreds of thousands of networked Christians.
The world first initiative will be the first of many for the Catholic Church which has embraced digital platforms and social media with enthusiasm and a significant marketing budget. Viocorp worked closely with the Catholic Churchs global television broadcasting unit CTV on the project which was run by CEO Ian Gardiner and marketing director Nick Bolton.
Gardiner said that streaming proved to be more cost effective than traditional TV or radio broadcasts. "Historically this would not have been achievable as it to cumbersome too expensive and you don¹t have air time. Online video streaming makes niche content being delivered to niche audiences real because you can deliver it cost effectively," he said.
"The selection of an Australian company to go to Rome to facilitate a live online broadcast feed on our platform also proves that it is more cost effective than provisioning satellite links. The processing, management and editing of large scale events, often live has become a skill center for us," Gardiner added.
