GoCast vs Presentations2Go

GoCast is a self-hosted platform for streaming and recording lectures. Organizations can run it on their own servers, keeping streaming data processing and storage under their control. It can automatically stream auditorium lectures according to schedules, while lecturers can also stream using OBS, Zoom, or other software. Lecturers manage videos through a self-service interface, and course and student enrollment information can be imported from CAMPUSonline. Live streams are recorded automatically, and video-on-demand uploads are supported. Post-processing can detect silence, create searchable transcripts, and generate thumbnails. Live chat lets listeners ask questions and upvote them; lecturers can run polls and mark or hide questions. Course access can be public, limited to enrolled or invited users, or restricted to users logged in with an LRZ ID. GoCast is open source under the MIT license and listed as free. Deployment requires worker or runner servers and shared storage. Its self-streaming guide warns that streams may be unreliable and recordings may be corrupted, and recommends keeping a local copy.

Presentations2Go is a cloud video platform for organizations that host, manage, stream and share video through branded portals. Its workflows include uploads, automatic transcoding, live streaming, lecture capture, scheduling, archiving, multi-source recording, and video assignments with feedback. The repository supports multilingual IEEE-LOM metadata, OAI-PMH harvesting, advanced search, OCR and automatic speech recognition, alongside searchable transcripts and automatic captions. Live video supports adaptive bitrate playback up to 4K using HLS and MPEG-DASH. LMS delivery is available through LTI, including Moodle, Canvas, Brightspace and Blackboard; the platform also lists SAML integration and an open API. iOS and Android apps can record and upload video. A browser-based screen and webcam recorder offers unlimited recording time and videos without a watermark, and is also available as a Chrome app. Hosting is in an ISO 27001 EU datacenter, with redundant hosting described across multiple EU datacenters. The platform is presented for business, education and healthcare organizations. A free plan and free trial are listed; prospective customers are directed to request a quote rather than shown a price.