I've produced literally thousands of hours of live television for various networks in my life. No matter where it's done, "live" always comes with a whole new set of concerns...even today. Because your signal is being exposed to the audience in real time, the margin for error is removed. We used to call it "Live....without a net!"
The same is unfortunately true and even magnified when it comes to live web casting. And it is the distribution method itself that injects one frustrating symptom: latency.
Now with Satelite distribution there may be a quarter-second latency inherent in the broadcast. This means that a viewer on the west coast of the U.S., watching a "live" broadcast from the east coast...will suffer a delay of about one fourth of one second. The delay is fairly consist ant for any viewer watching from a similar distance.
Enter live webcasting. Now, the signal is propagated over a distributed network of servers, routers and various other connections. There are weak links in the distribution chain...often in the last mile, or even in the last few feet (the home network). There are also technological speed bumps like a substandard PC. At any rate...with live webcasting there are MANY things that can impact how much delay is injected into the experience. As a result, someone watching a webcast in Los Angeles that is originating from New York may actually have a better viewing experience and suffer less delay...thank someone in Richmond, Virginia.
Ultimately, my question for clients who say they need "live" webcasting is this: "How LIVE do you need it to be?!"
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