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Streaming Media Collaboration: Benefits and Challenges of a Higher Education Technology Start-Up

La Verne Abe Harris Richard Newman Arizona State University

I. Introduction

In response to the need for distance learning options for remotely-located electronic engineering students, the Streaming Media Enterprise (SME) was created at Arizona State University through funding from a National Science Foundation Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Talent Expansion Program (STEP) grant. Part of the purpose of this grant was to set up the foundation of a streaming media enterprise, which would eventually be used to produce streaming media for online coursework. It became evident about midway through the implementation of the grant that more was needed to start-up a technology unit than just the acquisition of machines.

Machines are often deceiving. With a click of a key the multimedia production appears almost effortless because of the expertise of the multimedia professional. Because of this perception, a significant resource of the initial grant proposal was not addressed –– the need to fund personnel –– human capital with multimedia skill sets. The collaboration between two units: Electronic Systems (ES) and Graphic Information Technology (GIT) produced a temporary solution to the technology start-up unit.

Any technology start-up operation has obstacles to overcome in the equipment acquisition and construction decisions, the media room set-up, the production process decisions, and personnel issues. This paper addresses the benefits and challenges faced in a higher education environment and what has been learned from this experience.

II. Streaming media and the academe

What is streaming media? A basic overview of the technology is necessary to understand the benefits and challenges of the study. Streaming media is inclusive of both dynamic visual and audio content sent in a continuous stream over the Internet or Intranet. It is one of the fastest growing emerging technologies today. It enables real-time or on-demand access to multimedia content. 1,2 A live streamed event is called a “Webcast.”3 The term “streaming video” refers to compressed captured images. “Streaming media,” on the other hand, refers to streaming video with sound.4 The three dominant streaming media architectures today are QuickTime, RealMedia, and Windows Media.2 True streaming requires a specialized streaming server.

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Harris, L. V. A., & Newman, R. (2006, June), Streaming Media Collaboration: Benefits And Challenges Of A Higher Education Technology Start Up Paper presented at 2006 Annual Conference & Exposition, Chicago, Illinois. 10.18260/1-2--254