• by J. Max Robins , Featured Columnist, April 3, 2015

Ever since Twitter caught fire at the South by Southwest forum eight years ago, SXSW has  been the go-to forum not only for the next big thing in music, but also in digital. This year's digital it products there were all about video: Periscope and Meerkat, two live-video-streaming apps. 

It's an open question if either of these two platforms will become part of the social media marketing firmament.  Still, that this category is blowing up means a big opportunity for content marketers.

Meerkat garnered early cred when, after its Feb. 27 launch, a diverse list of marquee names ranging from Jimmy Fallon and Madonna to Jeb Bush and Shaquille O'Neal sent videos out via the app.

Meerkat might have grabbed the big bold-faced name push, but odds are Periscope has the legs to be a must-use in the social media toolkit.  One advantage is that Periscope lets users store videos.  Meerkat, a la SnapChat, is all about the moment; miss the video on Meerkat the first go-around and it's gone forever. 

Periscope,in case you missed it, is owned by Twitter. And big surprise: In the wake of Periscope's launch on March 26, Twitter blocked Meerkat users from syncing with their Twitter followers.

Meerkat is already working on a Twitter workaround. After making a splash at SXSW, its investors put another $14 million in its war chest.

Periscope has much more cash behind it -- and it's getting hundreds of thousands of downloads in the week since its launch.

Whoever wins in the category -- Periscope, Meerkat, or a player to be named later --  social video network live-streaming screams opportunity.  This is the time to experiment with both platforms.       

Advertisers already sponsor multiple live events, from annual meetings, sporting events and concerts to new product announcements. Social network platforms that allow live-streaming of videos offer a tremendous opportunity to show authenticity, transparency and spread a message far and wide.  Make that kind of real-time connection, and you have a real edge against the competition. 

So it’s no wonder that such brands as Spotify and Starbucks are already playing with Meerkat. And college sports franchises like Oregon State's football team have been experimenting with the inexpensive real-time streaming possibilities of Periscope. I've heard several pro franchises are looking at using Periscope, too.  It's only natural they would do so.

A futurist friend of mine, the one who told me weeks before Twitter's launch that it would be a game-changer, has been working in this space for the last few years. He said what Periscope and Meerkat are attempting is nothing short of creating “the live video cortex of the human race.” This growing data-rich live-video stream will provide endless possibilities for advertisers to engage audiences -- and see in real time how that engagement plays out.