Introduction to Web Video Players

To display an audio-video stream on a website using Storm Streaming Server, we also need a properly configured Web Video Player that we can embed. This guide discusses compatible players and the differences in functionality they offer.

Storm Library & Strom Player

Storm Library and Storm Player are two players that have been designed from the ground up to work seamlessly with both Storm Streaming Server and Storm Streaming Cloud. They are completely free, open-source and can be downloaded via the npm package manager, our GitHub page, or by adding a link to the JS file from our CDN.

The main difference between these players is that Storm Library only includes the Video object within a container, while Storm Player adds a fully functional user interface (Play/Pause buttons, volume control) on top. If you want to create your own interface or closely match the player's appearance to your website, we recommend using Storm Library, since it’s much lighter. On the other hand, as mentioned above Storm Player offers a full-fledged user interface with a wide range of configuration options regarding it looks.

Using Storm Library/Player allows for very low latency (around 200-300ms) thanks to a proprietary protocol based on WebSockets. These players will also automatically respond to state changes (e.g., stream publishing, start, or end).

For a quick guide, please check our Strom JavaScript Player integration with Storm Server page. If you want to see a quick example of an HTML page with an embedded Storm Library/Player along with a simple description, you can view it here.

For a complete documentation, please check our Storm JavaScript Players Getting Started, or check one of the following links:

Feel free to check our mobile-api as well:

Third party players

Storm Streaming Server is also compatible with popular players like JWPlayer, FlowPlayer, and JSVideo. The fundamental difference lies in the protocols used (HLS / MPEG-Dash), which inherently generate higher latencies compared to Storm Library and Storm Player.

These Web Video Players also do not support state management and will not react to changes occurring in the stream (you will need to implement this support on your own).

We have prepared simple guides on how to connect these popular players with Storm Streaming Server:

Next Step

We highly suggest to check Strom JavaScript Player integration with Storm Server for the next step!

On this page

Introduction to Web Video Players

Storm Library & Storm Player

Third party players

Next step