RTSP Protocol
Deliver fast, high-quality, fully scalable, secure Real-Time Streaming Protocol (RTSP) content from thousands of IP cameras, robots, drones, and more to viewers in milliseconds.
RTSP streaming at scale ? Solved.
Broadcast WebRTC video to millions in under 250 milliseconds.
Broadcast RTSP video to WebRTC viewers, fully encrypted, in under 250 milliseconds.
With Red5 Pro’s support for the RTSP protocol, create real-time surveillance apps to view numerous live streams with sub-250 millisecond latency. Send fully encrypted, high-quality streams viewable across all devices with frame-accurate synchronization of live metadata from Red5 Pro streaming media servers.
Real-Time RTSP Protocol Latency
Red5 reduces end-to-end latency to a range of 50-250ms, allowing for real-time monitoring of critical events to become a reality. No delays means your team can respond quicker.
Live Media Server Scalability
Red5 server software scales to hundreds of thousands of incoming RTSP video streams.
Flexibility
Customize your apps with our iOS, Android, Linux, and Desktop SDKs. Deploying infrastructure where you choose: in your data center/cloud of choice, including private 5G MECs.
Customers need sub-second RTSP media streams that scale across many industries.
Public Safety, Traffic Monitoring, Smart Cities, Surveillance, Military, and Government
Ultra-Low Latency Streaming Media Servers – RTSP
Ultra-Low Latency
Red5’s RTSP video streaming solution sends live video streams anywhere across the world from IP cameras to viewers in near-instant, sub-250 milliseconds of round trip latency.
Automatic Scaling
Our cross-cloud-based autoscaling solution automatically scales your media servers up and down in real time to deliver RTSP protocol media streams from thousands of IP cameras to real-time viewers using multiple streaming protocols.
Quality Streams
Industry-first WebRTC Adaptive Bitrate streaming (ABR) adjusts to network conditions and NACK resends critical dropped packets from the media server for consistent, high quality audio and video content even in the most difficult conditions.
Multi-Browser Support
Frame accurate metadata synchronization across the RTSP protocol provides additional information synchronized with the media stream via multiple metadata formats such as KLV, JSON, and binary.
Secure Streaming
Create fully encrypted, peer-to-peer WebRTC connections with deep integration in your own authentication systems.
FAQs
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What is the RTSP protocol and how does it work?
RTSP (Real-Time Streaming Protocol) is a network protocol designed for establishing and controlling media sessions between endpoints. Unlike HTTP, RTSP is stateful and works as a “network remote control” for media servers. It enables clients to issue VCR-like commands such as play, pause, and record to facilitate real-time control of media streaming from servers to clients. RTSP typically uses RTP (Real-time Transport Protocol) for the actual media delivery while maintaining session control through RTSP commands.
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What are the advantages of RTSP for video surveillance applications?
RTSP offers significant advantages for surveillance systems, including efficient bandwidth usage, reliable streaming over varying network conditions, and standardized control capabilities. It allows for precise control of streams with commands like play, pause, and seek, which is critical for security personnel reviewing footage. With Red5 Pro, these RTSP streams can be delivered to viewers with ultra-low latency, enabling real-time monitoring and faster response to security incidents across distributed teams and locations. Perhaps more importantly, RTSP is built into most IP cameras making it an ideal choice for compatibility across multiple hardware vendors.
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How many concurrent RTSP streams can Red5 Pro handle?
Red5 Pro’s architecture is designed to scale to hundreds of thousands of concurrent RTSP streams. Our cross-cloud-based autoscaling solution which we call XDN (eXperince Delivery Network) dynamically adjusts resources based on demand, allowing organizations to efficiently manage large IP camera networks without performance degradation. This scalability is particularly valuable for smart city deployments, large surveillance networks, and IoT applications where numerous devices stream simultaneously to multiple viewers.
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Can RTSP streams include synchronized metadata?
Yes, RTSP streams can include synchronized metadata, which is critical for applications requiring additional contextual information alongside video. Red5 Pro supports frame-accurate metadata synchronization across RTSP streams in multiple formats including KLV (Key-Length-Value), JSON, and binary data. This capability enables advanced applications such as object detection timestamps, GPS coordinates for moving cameras, telemetry data for drones, or augmented reality overlays—all precisely synchronized with the video feed.
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How does Red5 Pro handle RTSP to WebRTC conversion?
Red5 Pro seamlessly ingests RTSP streams from IP cameras and other devices, then transcodes and delivers that content using WebRTC technology. This conversion happens in real-time on our media servers, maintaining sub-250 millisecond latency while enabling delivery to any modern browser or device without plugins. The system preserves stream quality and synchronized metadata throughout the conversion process, allowing easy integration of RTSP sources into WebRTC-based applications.
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Can RTSP streams be encrypted for secure transmission?
Yes, RTSP streams can be fully encrypted for secure transmission. While traditional RTSP implementations may lack built-in encryption, Red5 Pro enhances security by supporting TLS/SSL encryption for RTSP connections and SRTP (Secure Real-time Transport Protocol) for media delivery. When converting RTSP to WebRTC, Red5 Pro implements DTLS-SRTP encryption, ensuring end-to-end security from camera to viewer. This makes Red5 Pro’s RTSP solution suitable for sensitive applications in government, healthcare, and corporate environments.
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What is the difference between RTSP and RTMP protocols?
RTSP and RTMP are both streaming protocols, but they serve different purposes. RTSP (Real-Time Streaming Protocol) is primarily used for controlling media sessions and is commonly implemented in IP cameras and surveillance systems. RTMP (Real-Time Messaging Protocol), developed by Adobe, was widely used for Flash video streaming. Additionally, RTMP lacks native browser support since Flash’s deprecation, while Red5 Pro’s RTSP-to-WebRTC solution works across all modern browsers without plugins.
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How does Red5 Pro maintain quality for RTSP streams over unstable networks?
Red5 Pro maintains high-quality RTSP streaming even over challenging network conditions through several innovative technologies. Our industry-first WebRTC Adaptive Bitrate (ABR) technology dynamically adjusts stream quality based on available bandwidth. Additionally, NACK (Negative Acknowledgment) packet recovery requests resend any dropped packets, ensuring continuous playback without interruptions. For mobile viewers or those on fluctuating networks, these technologies work together to deliver the highest possible quality while preventing buffering and stream failures—critical for applications like remote surveillance monitoring or field operations.