Live streaming has made it simple for businesses and brands to host events without a venue. It has also opened the door to something more selective. Virtual private shows are live streams built for one specific group of people, and nobody else.
Companies use them for internal meetings and product demos. Schools use them for online lessons. Creators use them for paid concerts and subscriber only Q&As. The audience is smaller by design, and that is the whole point.
This guide covers why virtual private shows are worth hosting, which platforms support them, and how to run one on your own webpage.
- Virtual private shows are live streams built for one specific group of people, and nobody else.
- They work for paid concerts, internal meetings, online classes, product demos and subscriber-only Q&As.
- Facebook, YouTube, Vimeo and Muvi all offer some form of privacy control, but each one keeps your audience on their platform.
- Custom Websites let you host a virtual private show on your own branded webpage instead.
- A Custom Website stays hidden until you publish it, and a password toggle decides who gets in after that.
Benefits of Hosting Virtual Private Shows
Private live streaming provides various advantages, such as:
Secure Shows
As the live streaming industry grows, the risk of becoming a cybercrime target has also increased. Cybercrime does not only cost organizations money. It damages the brand image too. Businesses can protect internal meetings, product demos and virtual classes by building privacy controls into their virtual private shows.
Paid Virtual Shows
Private shows allow you to host paid virtual concerts, performances, seminars and more. Only paying guests get access, exactly as they would at an in person ticketed event.
Protecting Exclusive Content
Exclusive content should stay with a restricted group of people. That might be certain subscribers, family or friends, company teammates or students. If you offer exclusive content, only your intended audience should be able to see it. Virtual private shows keep the stream locked to that group.
Platforms for Hosting Virtual Private Shows
There are many paid and free platforms for private live streams that provide the capability to create secure and intimate events. Some of them are listed below.
Facebook Live
Facebook introduced Facebook Live in 2016, allowing users to connect with each other in real-time. When the broadcasting is over, it’s possible to see the recorded video on Facebook’s timeline. It has evolved at the forefront of live streaming services by providing innovative features for businesses and brands. To host private live streams, it offers three privacy settings:
- Public
- Friends Only
- Only me
Apart from this, you can create a private Facebook group, or a Facebook event, invite an exclusive audience and live stream in it. Many brands use this strategy for marketing purposes and hosting private events.
YouTube Live
Big brands and organizations leverage YouTube to host their virtual events. It offers unique and diverse tools for broadcasters that allow them to host secure and private events. It enables users to set three privacy settings:
- Public
- Private
- Unlisted
By setting the stream’s privacy to Unlisted educational institutes, businesses and institutes have been hosting their webinars, online lectures, and internal meetings. Using this privacy setting, you restrict the stream from appearing in search results and allow only the audience that has the link to the stream.
Vimeo
Vimeo is a video sharing platform that includes live streaming and customization. The platform is ad free and earns through subscription plans for businesses and content creators. Vimeo has five privacy settings:
- Private
- Password protected
- Public
- Only me
- Hide from Vimeo, which lets you embed videos on your site without listing them on Vimeo
Read More: Vimeo Live vs YouTube Live: Which one is the best?
Muvi
Muvi Live is a robust live streaming platform with a full-featured service for private live streaming. Muvi has tight security and privacy controls, making broadcasting private live streams an easy job. It protects the content, the platform, and the user data from multiple security threats, piracy, and hackers who intend to disrupt your streaming platform. Muvi offers the following privacy settings:
- Server Level Security & Multi-level Firewall
- Multi-DRM & Watermark
- Geo-Blocking and VPN Detection
- ISO Certified Processes
OneStream Live
OneStream Live is a cloud based live streaming platform. You can schedule pre-recorded videos, go live in real time through any third party encoder, or broadcast straight from your browser with OneStream Live Studio. A single stream reaches 45+ social platforms and the web at the same time.
Privacy on social platforms is set from the dashboard. For your own audience, OneStream Live also offers Custom Websites, a branded webpage you build yourself. New websites stay hidden until you publish them, and a password can be added on top.
Read More: Stream on Your Own Branded Webpage with Custom Websites
How to Host Virtual Private Shows Using Custom Websites
Custom Websites give your stream its own webpage, hosted by OneStream Live or on a domain you already own. Every new site starts hidden, so private is the default and you decide when to open it up.
Here is the setup from start to finish.
1
Create the website
Log in to OneStream Live. On the dashboard, click on Custom Websites, then click New Website. Your plan includes a set number of website slots, and the counter above the list shows how many are still free.
2
Pick a theme
The Webpage tab opens on Page Style. Choose Light, Dark, OSL Purple or Custom, then set your font family. The preview on the left updates as you go, and the toggle at the top switches between desktop and mobile views.
3
Add your branding
Switch to Page Content. Upload your logo in PNG, JPG or WebP, then add your company name and text content. Turn on Social Links to add platforms one at a time, each with its own profile URL. Every link opens in a new tab.
4
Set up the player
The Player tab controls what viewers see on the video itself. Toggle the play button, volume, duration and progress bar. Decide whether picture-in-picture and fullscreen are allowed, and add a background image if you want one.
5
Turn on chat
Open the Chat tab to place a Live Chat panel beside the player. A private audience can still ask questions in real time.
6
Lock the page down
This is the step that makes it a virtual private show. Open the Access tab. New websites sit as Hidden, visible only to admins, until you publish. Turn on Password Protection and edit the hosted page address to something you are happy to share. Only people holding that link and the password get in.
7
Add your own subdomain
Optional, but worth it if you want the show on your own brand. The Access tab lets you stream from a subdomain of a website you already own, so viewers never leave your domain.
8
Publish and go live
Click Publish when the page is ready, then schedule a pre-recorded video or go live in real time. Once the show is over, the Analytics tab reports how the page performed.
Conclusions
Virtual private shows work because the audience is chosen rather than found. A hidden page, a password and a link you control are enough to keep a broadcast in the right hands. Everything after that is just production.
Social platforms can do a version of this. The show still sits on their page though, under their branding and their rules. A Custom Website puts it on yours instead, with your logo, your theme and your own subdomain.
Set it up once in OneStream Live, and the same page carries every show you run after it.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are virtual private shows?
Virtual private shows are live streams that only an invited or approved audience can watch. Access is controlled by a password, a private link or a paid ticket, so the broadcast never reaches the open public.
Can I charge people to attend a virtual private show?
Yes. Sell access through your own checkout or ticketing tool, then release the password or the page link only to buyers. The stream itself stays locked either way.
How do I stop someone from sharing the link to my private stream?
You cannot stop a link being forwarded, but you can make it useless on its own. Password protection adds a second step that a forwarded link will not pass. You can also keep the page hidden until the moment you want people to watch.
Can I host a virtual private show on my own website?
Yes. Custom Websites hosts the page for you, or you can point it at a subdomain of a site you already own. Viewers then watch on your own domain rather than somewhere else.
Which platform is best for hosting virtual private shows?
It depends on where your audience already is. Facebook and YouTube work if you want to stay on social. Use OneStream Live when you want the show on your own domain, under your own branding, with your own access rules.
OneStream Live is a cloud-based live streaming solution to create, schedule, and multistream professional-looking live streams across 45+ social media platforms and the web simultaneously. For content-related queries and feedback, write to us at [email protected]. If you have a story to share about your live streaming experience with OneStream Live, we would be glad to feature it. You’re also welcome to Write for Us!
