Updated October 2026. This article was first published in March 2025 and has been updated with current information.
Introduction
Hybrid entertainment events became popular during and after Covid-19. A hybrid event gives an audience the opportunity to watch an event in real time, either in person or virtually from wherever they are. Advancements in technology have continued to improve the quality of streaming, allowing events to reach more people and making them more inclusive and accessible to the general public.
Since then, the industry has learned a lot about where hybrid events work best. According to Bizzabo’s 2026 event statistics, 63% of events on its platform are in person, 33% are virtual, and 4% are hybrid. Bizzabo found that hybrid works best when it supports specific goals rather than trying to recreate the in-person experience online. At the same time, 82% of organizers create on-demand video from their events, which shows that a virtual audience is still an important part of planning. Hybrid events come with a set of benefits and challenges, but with the right strategies, they can be successful.
What Has Changed Since 2025
Several changes over the past year are important to consider when planning a hybrid event:
- Hybrid is more selective. Fewer events are being streamed, but the ones that are tend to have a clear purpose.
- Rights are getting more attention. Artist agreements, music licensing, and new laws about AI and likeness all affect what can be streamed and recorded.
- Ticket pricing rules have changed. The FTC’s all-in pricing rule for live-event tickets took effect on May 12, 2025.
- Accessibility deadlines are set. State and local governments now have federal deadlines for making web content, including video, accessible.
- Connectivity has improved. Satellite internet combined with cellular service has made streaming possible from rural sites and fairgrounds.
- Platforms are changing. Many streaming and event software companies have been bought or merged.
Defining Goals
When starting to plan an event, it can be beneficial to define a goal. Goals could include the number of people reached, attendance, revenue, donations, or sponsor impressions. It will be important to identify the audience to help drive marketing and engagement as the event is planned out. Creating a buzz with your intended audience will get people excited to both attend and view the event.
There may be different goals for the people attending in person and the people viewing the event virtually. In-person success might be measured by attendance, food and beverage sales, or sponsor booth traffic. Virtual success might be measured by viewers, watch time, or donations. Setting both goals before the budget is created will help decide how much production the virtual side needs. For example, a gala streaming a short fundraising appeal will need much less equipment than a festival streaming several stages.
Clearing the Rights
Before planning the technology, it is important to make sure the event has the rights to stream the performances. This is one of the areas where hybrid events can run into the most problems.
Artist agreements. A performance agreement covers the live show, but most touring artists’ contracts restrict audio and video recording unless both sides agree in writing. Streaming rights are often a separate negotiation and may come with a separate fee. If an event plans to stream, it will be important to include this in the offer. The agreement should explain whether the stream is live only or available afterward, whether clips can be used in marketing, and whether any songs are excluded. Bringing this up after the contract is signed can make it much harder to reach an agreement.
Music licensing. Venues usually have performance licenses from organizations such as ASCAP and BMI, which cover the songs played for the audience in the room. Whether these licenses also cover a stream depends on the terms. As one arts law column explains, some live performance licenses include streaming and others do not, and not every songwriter belongs to ASCAP or BMI. Large platforms like YouTube have their own licenses, which can help with a live stream. However, recording a performance and using it later can require additional licenses, as entertainment attorneys have noted. Some platforms may also automatically mute or flag streams when an uncleared song is played, which could interrupt the show. This is especially important for cover and tribute acts, since most of their songs were written by other artists.
Voice and likeness. AI tools have made it easier to create highlight reels, translations, and promotional clips from stream footage. However, these tools should be used carefully with performer content. Tennessee’s ELVIS Act, which took effect on July 1, 2024, protects an artist’s voice, including simulated versions of it. At the federal level, the NO FAKES Act, which would create a national right to control AI-generated copies of a person’s voice and likeness, advanced unanimously out of the Senate Judiciary Committee in June 2026. Since this law is still developing, it is best to get written permission before using AI to change or recreate a performer’s voice or image.
Planning
Taking the time to plan out each aspect of a hybrid event is essential to its success. It is important to think about both the in-person and virtual audiences when planning. Offering a hybrid event requires coordination to ensure both formats run smoothly. The in-person audience will need sound, lighting, seating, and safety, while the virtual audience will need a stream that looks good on a phone or a television and content that keeps them engaged.
Breaks between performances that go by quickly in person can feel long for viewers at home. Planning host segments, interviews, sponsor messages, or pre-recorded content can help fill these gaps. It can also be helpful to think about viewers in different time zones. For example, the Coachella livestream app syncs set times to each viewer’s time zone. Having one person in charge of the virtual experience can help make sure neither audience is forgotten.
Before the event, it will also be important to decide where the event will be streamed. The event could be streamed through free platforms such as YouTube, through ticketed livestream services, or through private platforms that require registration. Each option affects how many people the event can reach, how it can make money, and what data can be collected.
Technology and Production
There will be a wide range of aspects that need to be planned with the venue, such as sound, lighting, seating, and equipment. For the virtual side, video quality, streaming, online moderators, and the production crew will all need to be considered. It will also be essential to test the equipment for sound, lighting, and streaming before the event to make sure there are no problems.
Broadcast audio. The sound mix that works for a live crowd does not always sound right through headphones or a television. Many productions use a separate broadcast mix, often with microphones on the audience to capture the energy of the crowd.
Internet connection. Upload speed is one of the most important parts of a stream. According to Dacast, a 1080p stream at 30 frames per second needs a video bitrate of 4 to 6 Mbps, which requires about 8 to 12 Mbps of stable upload speed. Dacast recommends having about twice as much upload speed as the bitrate being used. Streaming in 4K or from multiple stages will require more.
For outdoor events, portable satellite internet such as Starlink is now often combined with several cellular connections to create a more reliable signal. A Starlink case study with IMG described using this setup to stream multi-camera golf coverage without fiber lines or broadcast trucks. This could make streaming possible at county fairs and rural festivals that may not have strong internet. It is still important to test the connection on site, since thousands of phones in one area can slow down cellular service.
Content delivery. A content delivery network, or CDN, will help minimize interruptions and buffering. Adaptive bitrate streaming adjusts the video quality to match each viewer’s connection, which can help viewers who have weaker internet at home.
Choosing a platform. The streaming industry has seen many changes. Brightcove, one of the longest-running streaming platforms, was acquired by Bending Spoons in February 2025, and Bizzabo found that 64% of organizers plan to change event software within the next year. When choosing a platform, it can be helpful to ask how registration data, analytics, and recordings could be exported if the event later switches providers.
Essential Equipment
To produce a successful event, it will be important to have the correct equipment. Live streaming a hybrid event will require more equipment than a normal show. Most hybrid productions will need:
- High-quality professional cameras, including at least one wide shot. Events with more than one stage will need cameras for each stage.
- Video switcher. Mixing equipment that can switch between cameras, graphics, and pre-recorded content.
- Audio equipment. A separate audio mixer or output for the broadcast mix, along with audience microphones.
- An encoder compresses the video and audio files to maintain quality and reduce buffering. Viewers’ devices then decode the information on their end.
- Internet connection. A main connection and at least one backup, such as bonded cellular or satellite.
- Live captions, either from a person or an automated service that is checked for accuracy.
- Someone watching the public stream on a normal device during the event to make sure viewers are seeing what they should.
Accessibility
Making an event accessible to everyone is an important part of hybrid planning. In 2024, the Department of Justice created a rule requiring state and local governments to make their websites and mobile apps meet the WCAG 2.1 Level AA standard, which includes captions for live video. On April 20, 2026, the DOJ extended the deadlines by one year. Governments serving 50,000 or more people now have until April 26, 2027, and smaller governments have until April 26, 2028. The extension did not change the standard or the ADA’s other requirements.
This is important for county fairs, city festivals, and other events run by public entities. If these events are streamed, planning for captions and an accessible video player early can help avoid problems later. Private events are not covered by this rule, but captions can still help reach a larger audience. To learn more, see our article on accessibility planning for live events.
Monetization and Sponsorships
Between in-person and virtual audiences, there are many opportunities to monetize and offer sponsorships for an event. This could mean branded stream segments, logos on screen, sponsored replays, virtual booths, or on-site activations that are shown on camera. Sponsorships can help fund the event while also helping with promotion and increasing awareness. Sponsors also want to know how many people they reached, so it will be helpful to agree ahead of time on how virtual viewers and watch time will be reported.
Virtual tickets. There is potential to increase revenue by selling both in-person and virtual tickets. However, new pricing rules now apply. The FTC’s Rule on Unfair or Deceptive Fees, which took effect on May 12, 2025, requires sellers of live-event tickets to show the total price, including all required fees, upfront. The FTC’s definition of live events includes performances that audiences watch as they happen, but not pre-recorded performances, so ticketed livestreams may be covered. The FTC is enforcing this rule and announced a $10 million settlement with StubHub in April 2026. It is a good idea to check with legal counsel when pricing virtual tickets.
Mobile apps. Offering a mobile app could be another way to enhance the hybrid experience. Through an app, attendees could access their tickets, maps of the venue, real-time updates, information about artists and vendors, exclusive content, food and beverage ordering, and merchandise. According to Bizzabo, 55% of attendees say the event app can make or break their experience. Apps also collect data, so it is important to follow privacy laws. In Texas, the Texas Data Privacy and Security Act, which took effect on July 1, 2024, requires consent before collecting sensitive data such as precise location. Many other states have similar laws.
Post-Event Analysis
After the event, the metrics collected from attendees and viewers can be used to understand what could be improved in the future. For the virtual audience, average watch time, replay views, donations, and sponsor impressions can be more helpful than the highest number of viewers at one time. For the in-person audience, attendance, sales, and feedback remain important measures.
Asking for feedback through surveys allows changes to be made to improve the overall experience. Since in-person and virtual audiences have different experiences, it can be helpful to survey them separately. Content from the stream can also continue to create value after the event through on-demand views, marketing clips, and sponsor renewals.
Effective planning through each step can help enhance the experience of each attendee and viewer. Taking the time to review each event can highlight areas of success and opportunities for growth.
Challenges
Every type of event comes with its challenges, and hybrid events are no different. Technical issues, internet connection problems, and the lack of a physical audience can all affect a virtual experience. It may also be hard for artists to feel connected to fans watching from home. If viewers do not feel engaged, they may lose interest or experience fatigue from watching through a screen.
Hybrid events can also have higher production costs. Additional staff, broadcast audio, internet connections, captioning, rights fees, and platform costs can all add up. Because of this, many organizers have chosen to record certain moments and share them later as on-demand content instead of streaming the entire event. When hosting a live hybrid event, it is important to give attention to both formats and create content designed for viewers at home. When a range of challenges is present, it offers the chance for both innovation and growth.
Hybrid Events in the Future
Coachella has been live streaming its festival since 2011 and has continued to improve the viewer experience over the years. In 2026, Coachella’s stream on YouTube covered seven stages and offered 4K video on three of them. Viewers could watch up to four stages at once, buy limited-edition merchandise directly through the stream, and watch a 24-hour channel featuring past and current performances. YouTube also reported that more than half of Coachella’s 2025 livestream watch time came from living room devices, showing that many viewers are now watching on their televisions.
Ticket prices continue to be one reason hybrid options are important. According to Pollstar’s 2025 year-end analysis, the average ticket price for the top 100 worldwide tours was $132.62 in 2025. This was down 2.4% from $135.92 in 2024, but still much higher than the $96.17 average in 2019. Stadium tickets averaged $216.13, an increase of 18.3% from the year before. Pollstar’s numbers are reported by promoters and venues, so the actual totals may be higher. As prices stay high, streaming could continue to give more fans a chance to experience live music.
As virtual reality continues to develop, it could create new hybrid experiences. In March 2025, Apple released a three-song Metallica concert for its Vision Pro headset, filmed with 14 immersive cameras. These experiences give viewers the chance to feel as if they are at the show. However, only people who own the headset can watch, so experiences like this are still rare. For now, improvements in internet connections, captioning, and on-demand content are likely to have the biggest impact on hybrid events.
Conclusion
Hybrid events have found their place in the entertainment industry. Rather than replacing in-person events, they have become a way to reach sponsors’ audiences, include people who cannot attend, serve the public, and create content that lasts after the event. Hybrid events may involve challenges with rights, technology, accessibility, and keeping both audiences engaged. However, with clear goals, careful planning, and attention to new rules, they can be successful. It is important to continue to experiment and evolve with new trends to improve the experience for every attendee and viewer.
Related Post: Accessibility Planning for Live Events
