WebRTC
Ultra-Low Latency, Browser-Native Video
WebRTC
WebRTC delivers live video to any browser in under half a second, with no plugins, no proprietary apps, and no waiting. For control rooms, command centers, and remote teams, that speed decides whether you watch an event or act on it. Benefits include:
- Ultra-Low Latency: WebRTC ingests and delivers video from capture to playback in under 500 milliseconds. That’s fast enough to control a camera, dispatch a response, or hold a two-way conversation with real-time interactivity.
- Browser-Native Playback: Every modern browser plays WebRTC natively, without additional configuration needed. Share a secure live feed through a simple link and skip the app, plugin, or proprietary client.
- Built-In Encryption: WebRTC encrypts every stream by default, keeping video private and protected across compliance-sensitive workflows.
- Bi-Directional Video: WebRTC powers real-time remote operation, telehealth, auctions, and command-and-control, where every fraction of a second counts.
- Reliable Connectivity: Wowza Streaming Engine establishes connections across NATs, firewalls, air-gapped systems, and restrictive enterprise networks using standards-based negotiation and configurable traversal servers.
Ingest & Deliver WebRTC Video with Wowza Streaming Engine
One ingest path feeds many delivery paths, all from the same media server:
- Ingest WebRTC audio and video and deliver it back to any WebRTC-capable player in less than a second
- Ingest a non-WebRTC source (like RTSP, SRT, or RTMP) and play it back over WebRTC
- Repackage a WebRTC ingest into HLS, LL-HLS, and DASH to reach large audiences without building a second workflow
Wowza Streaming Engine’s WebRTC implementation includes:
- WHIP and WHEP Support: Automatically support standards-compliant encoders, including OBS Studio, FFmpeg, and hardware from Osprey, Teradek, AJA, and Haivision.
- Full ICE Connectivity: Gather and validate connection candidates and raise the connection success rate across NATs, firewalls, and corporate networks.
- Configurable STUN and TURN: Meet the requirements of enterprise, government, and air-gapped deployments. Pre-configured public STUN servers ship by default.
- Deployment Flexibility: Routes through the same load balancers, ingress controllers, and API gateways as the rest of your stack. Runs across bare metal, virtual machines, Docker, Kubernetes, on-premises, hybrid, cloud, and edge.
Applications of WebRTC for Wowza
WebRTC powers the real-time, mission-critical side of modern video workflows Wowza Streaming Engine delivers WebRTC to teams that need:
- Sub-second visibility for control rooms, command centers, and remote operators who need to act on what they see on video feeds, in real-time.
- Secure video streams across restrictive firewalls, isolated networks, and air-gapped environments.
- A browser-native viewing experience that needs no app or plugin to deploy
Wowza also extends WebRTC across the workflows you already run:
- Upgrade Your Existing Cameras: Wowza pulls from your secure camera network and converts it to WebRTC for instant browser playback, without replacing hardware.
- Operate Equipment Remotely: WebRTC returns a sub-second video feed for cameras, drones, and machinery, so operators can make precise adjustments.
- Meet Compliance Requirements: WebRTC encrypts telehealth and law enforcement feeds across the Web RTC connection, which supports HIPAA and evidence chain-of-custody requirements.
- Feed AI Pipelines: WebRTC supplies real-time source video to object detection, scene analysis, event logging, and analytics workflows.
- Record And Stream Simultaneously: Fork a single ingest and deliver live over WebRTC while preserving a forensically-sound recording for a VMS or NVR.
WebRTC Frequently Asked Questions
What is WebRTC?
WebRTC (Web Real-Time Communication) is a free, open-source project that delivers real-time audio, video, and data directly to web browsers and mobile apps. The W3C and IETF maintain it as an open standard, and every modern browser supports it natively without plugins. Wowza Streaming Engine ingests WebRTC, secures it, and delivers it to viewers at sub-second latency.
What is WebRTC latency?
WebRTC latency is typically under 500 milliseconds and often lower, which qualifies as real-time. WebRTC streams continuously over UDP instead of downloading and buffering chunks of video, so it avoids the multi-second delay of segment-based protocols. This speed makes WebRTC the standard for monitoring, remote control, and two-way interaction.
How does WebRTC streaming work?
WebRTC establishes an encrypted media session over UDP using a standards-based handshake. The Session Description Protocol (SDP) negotiates the codecs, media types, and encryption parameters through an offer and answer exchange. The Interactive Connectivity Establishment (ICE) framework then gathers candidate network routes and tests them to find the best working path across NATs and firewalls. Once ICE selects the best path, encrypted media flows directly between the endpoints.
What is the difference between WebRTC and RTMP?
WebRTC delivers real-time, browser-native playback at sub-second latency, while RTMP (Real-Time Messaging Protocol) serves as a stable contribution protocol that browsers no longer play natively. Wowza commonly ingests either protocol and repackages it for the right delivery path. This comparison shows where each protocol fits:
| Protocol | Typical latency | Primary role |
| WebRTC | Under 500 ms | Real-time monitoring and two-way interaction |
| LL-HLS (Low-Latency HLS) | 2-5 seconds | Lower-latency delivery to large audiences |
| RTMP | 2-5 seconds | Contribution and ingest |
| HLS / MPEG-DASH | 10-30 seconds | Scalable live and on-demand delivery |
Is WebRTC free?
Yes. WebRTC is a free, open-source project, and the protocol carries no licensing fee. Most production deployments pair WebRTC with a commercial media server such as Wowza Streaming Engine to handle ingest, encryption, network traversal, recording, and multi-protocol delivery at scale.
Does WebRTC support encryption?
Yes. WebRTC requires encryption as part of the standard and uses DTLS (Datagram Transport Layer Security) and SRTP (Secure Real-time Transport Protocol) to protect the media payload. Wowza Streaming Engine also lets you deploy TURN servers inside your own network perimeter, which air-gapped, classified, and data-sovereignty environments often require.
What are WHIP and WHEP?
WHIP (WebRTC-HTTP Ingestion Protocol) handles WebRTC publishing, and WHEP (WebRTC-HTTP Egress Protocol) handles WebRTC playback. Both use a single HTTP request and response for signaling, so they work cleanly with standard load balancers and need no sticky sessions. Wowza Streaming Engine 4.11 supports WHIP, WHEP, and WebSocket signaling.
How do you set up WebRTC streaming in Wowza Streaming Engine?
WebRTC streaming in Wowza Streaming Engine takes three steps:
- Create a live application and configure an SSL/TLS certificate.
- Connect a WHIP-compatible encoder such as OBS Studio or FFmpeg, or point a non-WebRTC source like RTSP, SRT, or RTMP at the application.
- Configure STUN and TURN servers, or use the public STUN servers that ship by default to start immediately.
Wowza supports full custom STUN and TURN configuration for enterprise, government, and air-gapped deployments. Step-by-step instructions live in the Wowza documentation.
Is WebRTC good for surveillance and remote monitoring?
Yes. WebRTC is the standard for real-time monitoring because its sub-second latency, browser-native playback, and mandatory encryption suit surveillance, remote operations, and command-and-control, where a multi-second delay slows the response. Because WebRTC works peer to peer and does not record or fan out to large audiences on its own, production deployments pair it with Wowza Streaming Engine to record, secure, and scale the feed.
Why does a WebRTC stream fail to connect?
A WebRTC stream usually fails to connect because a firewall or symmetric NAT blocks the direct peer connection. STUN resolves roughly 80 to 85 percent of these cases, and a TURN server relays the rest. Wowza Streaming Engine supports configurable STUN and TURN, so production deployments configure both to keep connections reliable across restrictive networks.