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Amazon Interactive Video Service
What Amazon Interactive Video Service is
Amazon Interactive Video Service (IVS) is a managed live-streaming service for delivering video with either low latency or real-time interaction. AWS lists real-time streaming latency under 300 milliseconds and low-latency streaming at 3–5 seconds. Real-time streams take RTMPS or WHIP input and use WebRTC output; low-latency streams take RTMPS or SRT input and use HLS output. Applications can use chat and timed metadata APIs for features such as polls, graphics, and synchronized elements. A stage allows multiple hosts to exchange audio and video, and can be broadcast to an IVS channel for a larger audience. Standard and advanced channels can transcode video into multiple resolutions and bitrates. IVS can record streams to customer-owned Amazon S3 storage for archiving and on-demand playback, with recordings usable in AWS Elemental MediaConvert. AWS says channels can scale to millions of concurrent viewers. Listed channel input rates include Basic at $0.20 a month, Advanced SD at $0.50 a month, Advanced HD at $0.85 a month, and Standard at $2 a month, all pay-as-you-go. A Free Tier is also listed for new AWS customers.
Who it suits
IVS suits developers and organizations building live video applications that need real-time or low-latency delivery, interactive features, or stream recording. Broadcast and player SDKs support web, iOS, and Android.
What it does well
- Offers real-time latency under 300 milliseconds
- Chat and timed metadata APIs support interaction
- Stages let multiple hosts exchange audio and video
- Can record streams to Amazon S3
What to know first
- Customers are responsible for security in the cloud
- Basic channel input has stated bitrate limits
Limits
The Free Tier lists monthly allowances for the first 12 months for new AWS customers, including 5 hours of basic-channel video input, 100 hours of audio-only or SD video output, and 20 participant hours; the available facts do not specify the complete server-side composition allowance. Basic channels accept input up to 1.5 Mbps at 480p or 3.5 Mbps at 720p or 1080p; standard and advanced channels accept up to 8.5 Mbps and 1080p.
Plans
| Plan | Billed and limits | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Advanced SD channel input | Pay-as-you-go · Low-latency streaming video input | $0.50 a month |
| Advanced HD channel input | Pay-as-you-go · Low-latency streaming video input | $0.85 a month |
| Real-Time Streaming participant hours | North America, first 10,000 participant hours per month · 10,000 participant hours per month | $0.07 a month |
| Free Tier | Monthly for first 12 months for new AWS customers · 5 basic-channel input hours · 100 audio-only/SD output hours · 20 participant-hours · 5 server-side composition hours · 13,500 messages sent · 270,000 messages delivered | Free |
| Basic channel input | Per hour of video input · Basic channel · maximum input 1.5 Mbps at 480p or 3.5 Mbps at 720p/1080p | $0.20 |
| Advanced SD input | Per hour of video input · Advanced SD channel | $0.50 |
| Standard Multitrack input | Per hour of video input · Standard channel with Multitrack Video | $0.50 |
| Advanced HD input | Per hour of video input · Advanced HD channel | $0.85 |
The first 8 of 10 plans, as aws.amazon.com lists them, read 20 Sept 2026. The maker's own page has the final word. Every plan
Getting started
- Open https://aws.amazon.com/ivs/.
- Create an AWS account to access the listed Free Tier for new customers.
- Choose a streaming mode and channel type based on the listed input options and limits.
- Use the broadcast SDK for iOS, Android, or web, and the Player SDK for playback.
- Add chat or timed metadata APIs if the application needs interactive elements.
- Configure recording to Amazon S3 if you need archiving or on-demand playback.
Verdict
IVS provides two streaming latency options, interactive APIs, host stages, and recording integration. Pricing varies with service and usage; AWS also lists a Free Tier for new customers.
Questions
How is Amazon IVS priced?
Pay-as-you-go pricing is usage-based, with charges for video input and output, participant hours, chat messages, and optional encoding. Rates vary by service, resolution, region, and usage tier.
Is there a free plan?
A Free Tier is listed for new AWS customers, with monthly allowances for the first 12 months. A free account plan is available for 6 months after account creation.
Which platforms are supported?
Broadcast and player SDKs support web, iOS, and Android.
Can IVS record live streams?
Yes. IVS can record live video to Amazon S3 for archiving and on-demand playback. Recording storage is customer-owned.
Who makes Amazon IVS?
The maker is Amazon Interactive Video Service. The maker is listed as founded in 2006.
What is the difference between its streaming modes?
AWS lists real-time latency under 300 milliseconds and low-latency delivery at 3–5 seconds. Real-time uses RTMPS or WHIP input with WebRTC output; low-latency uses RTMPS or SRT input with HLS output.
Facts from Amazon Interactive Video Service's own pages
- Adaptive bitrate
- Standard and advanced channels create multiple renditions so playback can adapt to device and network conditions. · aws.amazon.com, 14 Oct 2026
- Adaptive playback
- For standard or advanced channels, IVS can transcode incoming video into multiple resolutions and bitrates for different devices and network conditions. · aws.amazon.com, 30 Sept 2026
- API and documentation
- AWS publishes Low-Latency, Real-Time and Chat user guides plus control-plane and data-plane API references and SDK documentation for Android, iOS, web and JavaScript. · docs.aws.amazon.com, 14 Oct 2026
- Broadcast SDKs
- Broadcast SDKs let iOS, Android and browser applications publish live video using cameras, microphones, screens or custom sources. · aws.amazon.com, 14 Oct 2026
- Collaboration
- A stage lets multiple hosts exchange audio and video in real time and can be broadcast to an IVS channel for a larger audience. · aws.amazon.com, 30 Sept 2026
- Collaborative stages
- Stage resources combine audio and video from multiple hosts and can be broadcast to a larger low-latency channel audience. · aws.amazon.com, 14 Oct 2026
- Company size and founding
- AWS's LinkedIn page lists Seattle headquarters, 10,001-plus employees and a 2006 founding year. · linkedin.com, 14 Oct 2026
- Developer resources
- AWS provides user guides and API references for real-time streaming, low-latency streaming, and the chat feature, along with AWS re:Post resources. · aws.amazon.com, 30 Sept 2026
- Encryption limitation
- IVS playback uses HTTPS and ingest can use RTMPS, but AWS states streams are not end-to-end encrypted internally and IVS does not provide DRM or stream-content encryption. · docs.aws.amazon.com, 14 Oct 2026
- Founded
- 2006 · aws.amazon.com, 28 Sept 2026
- Free plan
- No · aws.amazon.com, 20 Sept 2026
- Interactive features
- The service provides chat APIs and timed metadata APIs that applications can use for chat rooms, polls, graphics, and synchronized elements. · aws.amazon.com, 30 Sept 2026
- Latency
- AWS lists real-time streaming latency as under 300 milliseconds and low-latency streaming as 3–5 seconds. · aws.amazon.com, 30 Sept 2026
- Latency modes
- The feature comparison lists real-time latency below 300 milliseconds and low-latency streaming at about 3–5 seconds. · aws.amazon.com, 14 Oct 2026
- Launch news
- AWS announced general availability of Amazon IVS on July 15, 2020, describing Twitch-based technology, sub-three-second latency and pay-as-you-go input/output billing. · aws.amazon.com, 14 Oct 2026
- Legal entity and owner
- AWS legal pages identify Amazon Web Services, Inc. at 410 Terry Avenue North in Seattle and describe it as wholly owned by Amazon.com, Inc. · aws.amazon.com, 14 Oct 2026
- Licence
- The Web Broadcast SDK page states Amazon copyright and AWS Customer Agreement terms; it is not presented as open-source software, although bundled libraries have separate Apache-2.0, BSD or MIT licenses. · aws.github.io, 14 Oct 2026
- Limit: browser and interactivity gaps
- An Ex Machina review reported higher and variable latency on iOS Safari, lack of low-latency support in some third-party players, and one-way metadata without built-in poll result handling. · medium.com, 14 Oct 2026
- Limit: cost complaints
- Reddit users reported unexpectedly high test bills and said IVS streaming costs prompted consideration of building or using another stack. · reddit.com, 14 Oct 2026
- Maker
- Amazon Web Services says it launched in 2006 and is part of Amazon. · aws.amazon.com, 30 Sept 2026
- Mobile requirements
- The Player SDK supports Android 6.0 and later and iOS 14 or later. · docs.aws.amazon.com, 14 Oct 2026
- Network requirements
- Broadcasting requires accessible IVS_LOW_LATENCY subnets globally, regardless of the selected AWS control-plane region. · docs.aws.amazon.com, 14 Oct 2026
- Notable update
- On September 10, 2025 AWS announced PrivateLink interface VPC endpoints for private RTMP(S) ingest from VPC or on-premises networks in selected regions. · aws.amazon.com, 14 Oct 2026
- Outage history
- StatusGator reports monitoring Amazon IVS since March 2015 and collecting more than 2,214 outage records. · statusgator.com, 14 Oct 2026
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