Live Video Streams

Watching live news channels, managing quality settings, and webcam feeds

World Monitor includes 8+ default live video streams from global news networks, plus 30+ optional channels and 22 live webcams from geopolitical hotspots.

Default Channels

Full Variant (Geopolitical)

Bloomberg

Financial news and markets

Sky News

UK-based international news

Euronews

European perspective, 24/7

DW (Deutsche Welle)

German public broadcaster

CNBC

Business and financial news

France24

French international news

Al Arabiya

Middle East perspective

Al Jazeera

Qatar-based global news

Tech Variant

Bloomberg

Tech and business coverage

Yahoo Finance

Markets and tech news

CNBC

Tech sector coverage

Sen Space Live

Space and aerospace

Stream Playback

HLS Native Streaming

10 channels use native HLS <video> elements instead of YouTube iframes:

• Sky News
• Euronews
• DW (Deutsche Welle)
• France24
• Al Arabiya
• CBS News
• TRT World
• Sky News Arabia
• Al Hadath
• RT (Russia Today - banned from YouTube, HLS-only)

Benefits:

• Bypasses YouTube cookie popups
• No bot detection issues
• Works in WKWebView (desktop app)
• Native browser controls

Fallback behavior:

• If HLS fails, 5-minute cooldown triggers
• Automatic switch to YouTube iframe fallback
• Transparent to user

YouTube IFrame Embedding

Channels without HLS streams use YouTube’s IFrame API:

• Auto-discovery of live streams
• 5-minute channel page scraping
• Fallback video IDs when no live stream detected

Desktop Embed Bridge

YouTube restricts playback in native webviews (error 153). The desktop app:

1. Detects WKWebView environment
2. Routes streams through cloud-hosted embed proxy
3. Bidirectional message passing for controls (play/pause/mute/unmute)
4. Transparent to user

The web version uses direct YouTube iframes. The desktop app uses the embed bridge automatically when needed.

Quality Control

Global streaming quality applies to all channels:

Quality Levels

Auto

Adaptive bitrate (default)

360p

Low bandwidth, mobile-friendly

480p

Standard definition

720p

High definition (requires good connection)

Changing Quality

1. Locate Quality Selector

   Find the quality dropdown in the Live Video Streams panel header.

2. Select Quality

   Choose: Auto (default), 360p, 480p, or 720p.

3. Instant Propagation

   Quality change applies to all active players immediately via stream-quality-changed CustomEvent.

4. Preference Saved

   Selection persists in localStorage across sessions.

720p requires a stable broadband connection. If you experience buffering, switch to 480p or Auto.

Optional Channels

30+ additional channels available from the expandable library:

By Region

North America (7 channels)

• LiveNOW from FOX
• Fox News
• Newsmax
• ABC News
• CBS News
• NBC News
• CBC News (Canada)

Europe (11 channels)

• BBC News
• France 24 English
• WELT (Germany)
• RTVE 24H (Spain)
• TRT Haber (Turkey)
• NTV (Turkey)
• CNN TURK
• TV Rain (Russia)
• RT (Russia Today)
• TVP Info (Poland)
• Telewizja Republika (Poland)

Latin America (10 channels)

• CNN Brasil
• Jovem Pan News (Brazil)
• Record News (Brazil)
• Band Jornalismo (Brazil)
• TN - Todo Noticias (Argentina)
• C5N (Argentina)
• MILENIO (Mexico)
• Noticias Caracol (Colombia)
• NTN24 (Colombia)
• T13 (Chile)

Asia (7 channels)

• TBS NEWS DIG (Japan)
• ANN News (Japan)
• NTV News (Japan)
• CTI News (Taiwan)
• WION (India)
• CNA NewsAsia (Singapore)
• NHK World Japan

Middle East (5 channels)

• Al Hadath (Saudi Arabia)
• Sky News Arabia
• TRT World (Turkey)
• Iran International
• CGTN Arabic (China)

Africa (5 channels)

• Africanews
• Channels TV (Nigeria)
• KTN News (Kenya)
• eNCA (South Africa)
• SABC News (South Africa)

Adding Optional Channels

1. Open Available Channels Tab

   Click the “Available Channels” tab in the Live Video Streams panel.

2. Browse by Region

   Channels are organized by geographic region for easy discovery.

3. Click to Add

   Click any channel to add it to your active channel list.

4. Preference Saved

   Your channel selection is saved to localStorage as worldmonitor-live-channels.

Removing Channels

1. Locate Active Channel

   Find the channel in your active channels list.

2. Click Remove Button

   Click the × or Remove button next to the channel.

3. Channel Hidden

   Channel is removed from active list (can be re-added later).

Live Webcams

22 live webcams provide real-time visual monitoring from geopolitical hotspots:

Webcam Regions

Iran/Attacks

Tehran, Tel Aviv, Jerusalem feeds for escalation monitoring

Middle East

Regional hotspot cameras

Europe

European city feeds

Americas

North and South America

Asia-Pacific

East Asian monitoring

Webcam Views

Grid View

Display 4 strategic feeds simultaneously:

• 2×2 grid layout
• Synchronized playback
• Region filtering
• Ideal for monitoring multiple locations

Single-Feed View

Focus on one webcam:

• Full-size player
• Maximum detail
• Better for specific location monitoring

Using Webcams

1. Open Webcams Tab

   Click the “Live Webcams” tab in the panel.

2. Select Region

   Filter by region: Iran/Attacks, Middle East, Europe, Americas, or Asia-Pacific.

3. Choose View Mode

   Toggle between Grid (4 feeds) or Single-Feed view.

4. Lazy Loading

   Webcams use Intersection Observer for performance - only visible feeds load.

Iran/Attacks Tab

Dedicated 2×2 grid for escalation events:

• Tehran - Iranian capital monitoring
• Tel Aviv - Israeli coastal city
• Jerusalem - Strategic holy city
• Additional strategic feed

Provides real-time visual context during regional tensions.

Idle-Aware Playback

Video streams automatically pause to conserve resources:

Idle Detection

• 5-minute inactivity - Streams pause and are removed from DOM
• Tab visibility changes - Streams suspend when tab is hidden
• Auto-resume - Streams resume when user returns

Why This Matters

• Battery saving - Prevents drain on laptops and mobile devices
• Bandwidth conservation - Stops streaming when not actively watching
• Performance - Frees GPU resources for other tasks

Idle detection applies to both live news channels and webcams. Manual play overrides idle state.

Player Controls

Standard Controls

All video players support:

• Play/Pause - Space bar or click button
• Mute/Unmute - M key or click volume icon
• Volume - Arrow keys or drag slider
• Fullscreen - F key or fullscreen button

Synchronized Quality

Changing global quality affects all active players:

1. Quality change event fired
2. All players receive stream-quality-changed event
3. Players reload with new quality setting
4. No page reload required

Channel Management

Restoring Defaults

Reset to default channel list:

1. Open Channel Settings

   Find the “Restore Defaults” option in channel management.

2. Click Restore

   Confirm restoration to variant-specific defaults.

3. Channels Reset

   Active channels revert to the 8 (or 4 for tech) default streams.

Storage Keys

Channel preferences are stored in localStorage:

• worldmonitor-live-channels - Selected channels
• worldmonitor-stream-quality - Quality preference
• worldmonitor-webcam-region - Last selected webcam region

Troubleshooting

Stream Not Playing

Check Live Status

Some channels may not be live 24/7. The system auto-detects live streams every 5 minutes.

Fallback behavior: If no live stream detected, a pre-recorded fallback video plays.

Browser Autoplay Policies

Modern browsers block autoplay with sound.

Solution: Manually click play on the first video. Subsequent streams will autoplay muted.

HLS Failure

If HLS stream fails, automatic fallback to YouTube iframe occurs after 5 minutes.

Check: Look for fallback indicator in player.

Desktop App Error 153

YouTube restricts playback in native webviews.

Solution: Desktop app automatically routes through embed bridge. If issue persists, try restarting the app.

Buffering Issues

1. Lower Quality

   Switch from 720p → 480p → 360p → Auto until buffering stops.

2. Check Connection

   Run a speed test. 720p requires ~5 Mbps, 480p ~2.5 Mbps, 360p ~1 Mbps.

3. Reduce Active Streams

   Limit concurrent streams to 2-3 if on slower connection.

4. Clear Browser Cache

   Old cache entries can cause playback issues. Clear and reload.

No Video Visible

Panel Collapsed

Ensure the Live Video Streams panel is expanded (not minimized).

Channel Not Added

Verify the channel is in your active channels list, not just the available channels library.

Ad Blocker Interference

Some ad blockers block YouTube iframes. Whitelist worldmonitor.app.

Next Steps

News Feeds

Read and filter RSS feeds

Command Palette

Quick search and navigation

Panels

Customize panel layout

Map Controls

Visualize events on the globe