Upstream’s Summer Update (March to June 2026) matures all three pillars at once: a rebuilt playout engine for 24/7 and pre-recorded channels, native MP4 recording, and Live Studio V2 for guest broadcasts. It also brings 72-hour scheduling, schedule-aware multistreaming, green-screen chroma key, and 16 new audio visualizers. Here’s everything new and where to find it.
What’s new at a glance
| Feature | What it does | Where to find it |
|---|---|---|
| Rebuilt playout engine | More stable 24/7 and pre-recorded streams, with live internet radio and picture-in-picture | 24/7 channel / pre-recorded stream setup |
| Native recording | Save your broadcasts as MP4 files inside Upstream | Stream settings (per stream or account default) |
| Live Studio V2 | Self-healing guest sessions, a Green Room, and per-guest audio controls | Live Studio |
| 72-hour scheduling | Continuous schedule blocks up to 72 hours, recurring or one-time | Schedule settings |
| Schedule-aware multistreaming | Choose which destinations turn on per scheduled block | Schedule + multistream destinations |
| Chroma key + 16 visualizers | Green-screen any element; new audio visualizer presets and timers | Stream Designer |
What changed in the playout engine?
The 24/7 always-on channels and pre-recorded “live” video now run on a rebuilt playout engine for broadcaster-grade stability and finer control over your media. Overlays and the Stream Designer work on these streams too.
Live internet radio
Live internet radio lets you pull a live radio station straight into your stream. If the station briefly drops, it reconnects automatically, so your channel keeps running without you watching it.
Picture-in-Picture
Picture-in-Picture shows multiple video sources at once. Drag and resize PiP windows on the canvas, and Upstream auto center-crops each one to fit cleanly.
Mix aspect ratios
You can now combine 16:9, 4:3, 1:1, or any ratio in one stream. Upstream adds clean black bars to preserve scaling, so mixed-source playlists look intentional instead of stretched.
Resume after restart
If you restart a stream, it picks up from the exact spot it left off, remembering your playback position and queue order, including an active shuffle. You can also choose to restart from the beginning instead.
Deck controls and clean skips
Deck controls let you skip, go back, or jump to a specific item instantly. A tiny 100ms fade before each skip removes audio pops and clicks. A scheduled fade-out also eases audio down before a stream ends instead of cutting off abruptly.
Live Now Playing and faster starts
Now Playing details (title, artist, album, duration) update the instant a track changes, and can peek the next track. Streams now show video in about 2 seconds, down from roughly 5. Tip: add about 2 seconds of lead at the start of files so the first frame shows on YouTube.
Go live from your browser.
Invite guests, share screens, build scenes, and add overlays without installing or wiring together another production stack.
Can you record a stream on Upstream?
Yes. You can now record your broadcasts inside Upstream and save them as MP4 files.
Native recording
Native recording saves a broadcast as an MP4. Turn it on per stream or set it as a global account default. Recordings upload in chunks with automatic retry, so a brief network drop won’t lose the file, and Upstream assembles and converts everything to MP4 automatically on the server.
Editable metadata and custom thumbnails
Edit file details
You can edit a file’s Title, Artist, Album, Year, and Genre right from the asset menu. Edits show up across playlists, properties, and overlays, and you can download a file with your edited metadata embedded.
New overlay tags and thumbnails
New text-overlay tags let a Now Playing display show {filename}, {year}, and {genre}. You can also upload your own custom thumbnail for any audio or video file, or restore the auto-generated one in one click.
What’s new in Live Studio V2?
Live Studio was rebuilt for durable, broadcast-grade sessions with guests. The result is a studio that survives the small disconnects that used to end shows.
Self-healing connections
If you or a guest briefly lose internet, rejoining restores your exact place. If the host goes idle or disconnects, guests are no longer kicked, so a hiccup on your end won’t clear the room.
A real Green Room
The Green Room is a private waiting room where approved guests sit before you bring them on air. You decide the moment each guest goes live.
Better audio control
Audio level meters on every participant tile show who’s too quiet or clipping. Per-participant volume sliders are remembered for next time, and one-click “Resume audio” or “Reconnect audio” buttons appear if the browser mutes sound.
Backstage audio and permissions
Backstage audio stays off the live broadcast, so your team can talk privately while you’re on air. You can also set per-participant screen-share permissions and run private, sign-in-only studio channels.
What’s new in the Stream Designer?
The Stream Designer overlays gained green-screen keying, more audio visualizers and overlay timers, and richer slideshows.
Chroma key (green screen)
Chroma key removes a solid background from any video or image element, so you can drop yourself or a clip onto your own scene without extra software.
16 new audio visualizers
There are 16 new visualizer presets, including Classic Bars, Neon Graph, Retro LED, LED Matrix, and Radial Pulse, plus 26+ settings like rounded bars, peak fade, gravity, and mirrored layouts. Visualizers are capped to your stream’s frame rate to keep CPU use low.
Playback timers and video slideshows
New timer and progress elements sync to playback, including a progress bar and a compact progress icon that auto-hides when nothing’s playing. Slideshows can now mix video clips and images, and a Now Playing widget can show metadata from a secondary channel for multi-track streams.
How do scheduling and multistreaming work now?
This is the core of the update for simulcasters: longer schedules paired with per-block control over schedule-aware multistreaming.
72-hour continuous scheduling
Schedule and break blocks can now run up to 72 hours, up from 23. “Daily” schedules are now called “Recurring,” and you can schedule your livestream to play a playlist once or loop it until the stream ends.
Schedule-aware multistreaming
You can now include or exclude specific destinations per scheduled block, so you control exactly which platforms turn on automatically at each point in your schedule. Pair it with the ability to multistream to every platform at once for tightly controlled rollouts. See how to multistream to YouTube, Twitch and Kick.
YouTube scheduled events
With Connect Streams you can create a YouTube live event in advance and get a shareable watch URL to send out days ahead, or still create it at go-live. Our guide on how to schedule pre-recorded videos on YouTube walks through the flow.
Team, billing and access
Redesigned Team Access
The redesigned team access has a cleaner layout, lets you invite people by email before they’ve made an Upstream account, and shows pending invites with profile photos. You can also hide specific streams from shared team members while keeping them for the owner.
Live billing math
Prorated amounts (upgrades, downgrades, existing balance, and coupons) are now calculated live on the plan slider, so you see the exact figure before you confirm.
Under the hood: reliability and efficiency work across recording, billing consistency, and abuse protection, plus a refreshed two-factor sign-in, automatic profile photos on Google login, a guided new-user onboarding, and wider sign-up access for new users in more regions.
Where this fits
Building a hands-off channel? Start with 24/7 always-on channels and pre-recorded “live” video. Running shows with guests? See Live Studio. Reaching every platform? Combine scheduling with multistreaming, and design the look in the Stream Designer.
FAQ
Can you record a live stream on Upstream?
Yes. Native recording saves your broadcasts as MP4 files inside Upstream. Turn it on per stream or as an account default. Recordings upload in chunks with automatic retry, so a brief network drop won’t lose the file.
How long can an Upstream schedule run?
A single continuous schedule block can now run up to 72 hours, up from 23. You can also set recurring schedules and choose to play a playlist once or loop it until the stream ends.
What is schedule-aware multistreaming?
It lets you include or exclude specific multistream destinations per scheduled block, so you control exactly which platforms turn on automatically for each part of your schedule.
Does Upstream support green screen?
Yes. The new chroma key tool keys out a solid background on any video or image element in the Stream Designer, so you can drop in your own background without extra software.
What’s new in Live Studio V2?
Live Studio V2 adds self-healing connections, a private Green Room for guests, per-participant audio meters and volume sliders, backstage audio, and one-click audio recovery if your browser mutes.
Get started
You can try all these features now. The Upstream free plan lets you try everything in this update, including a scheduled 24/7 channel, native recording, and multistreaming to your platforms. Spin up a channel and turn on recording when you’re ready.
