AB celebrates 20 years of ABtv

Exactly 20 years ago, AB sent the very first concert out into the world by means of live streaming. Actually ‘out into the world’ is a relative term, as worldwide streaming was still very much in its infancy at that time.

For comparison: on YouTube, which was founded less than a year earlier, you could only upload one-minute clips (of very low quality). It didn’t complete its first worldwide stream until November 2008.

In the early years, ABtv was a separate platform on which local acts could be followed live from your home on www.abconcerts.tv. We ran our content on our own server and mainly reached Belgian music fans. You can still watch the official opening at Briskey’s 2006 concert:

It was only after we got a live stream deal with YouTube in 2013 (the first European concert venue to do so!) that we really went global. Goose had the honour to kick off on 9 February.

Many national and international acts followed and since 2017, with 135k subscribers, we have welcomed the whole world.

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AB celebrates 20 years of ABtv

Exactly 20 years ago, AB sent the very first concert out into the world by means of live streaming. Actually ‘out into the world’ is a relative term, as worldwide streaming was still very much in its infancy at that time.

Exactly 20 years ago, AB sent the very first concert out into the world by means of live streaming. Actually ‘out into the world’ is a relative term, as worldwide streaming was still very much in its infancy at that time.