Live streaming has evolved, and audience expectations have moved even faster. Viewers want instant playback, real-time interaction, and reliable quality, no matter where they are or what network they’re on.
At Streaming Media Connect 2025, industry experts explored how Media over QUIC (MOQ) is helping close the gap between real-time interaction and broadcast-quality delivery. Spoiler alert: Media over QUIC has already moved from theory into real-world production.
The discussion confirmed one thing: MOQ opens the door to a new generation of live experiences, especially for interactive real-time use-cases.
Key benefits include:
- MOQ delivers better performance and quality especially in challenging network conditions
- MOQ delivery lower latency, especially for real-time streaming
- MOQ offers finer control than WebRTC
- MOQ avoids the buffering and chunk request trade-offs of HLS
In the session “From Real-Time to Broadcast: How Media over QUIC Is Unlocking New Live Experiences”, moderated by Victoria Tuzova (Head of Strategic Partnerships, Elecard), speakers Oliver Lietz (CEO, nanocosmos), Ali C. Begen (Professor, Computer Science, Özyeğin University), and Luke Curley (Open Source MOQ Contributor) explored how MOQ is reshaping low-latency streaming in interactive real-time use cases.
This article recaps the key insights of the webinar and real-world applications for Media over QUIC.
Why real-time video needs a new approach: MOQ vs. other live streaming protocols
For years, the industry has relied on HLS and DASH for large-scale delivery. They work with noticeable delays. WebRTC, on the other hand, enables real-time interaction but has technical limitations with video codec and streaming configurations, and is complex to scale. MOQ is much simpler, with a lot more flexibility for different use cases.
For nanocosmos, working already for 10 years in the ultra-low latency space, we chose MOQ as the right protocol for next generation real-time streaming.
Built on the QUIC transport protocol, MOQ enables much better network resilience and stability especially in bad networks and low and predictable latency.
QUIC improves streaming quality by prioritizing what matters most, audio and interaction, when bandwidth is limited. Instead of waiting for every missing piece of data, MoQ keeps streams moving—especially when networks are far from perfect.
What Makes MOQ Different and Use Cases
When the network connection is not stable, MOQ can prioritize what matters most, like audio or the latest video frames, rather than waiting for missing data (which causes streaming interruptions). It adapts quickly prioritizing real-time video with low-latency.
This approach is particularly powerful for the following use cases:
- Live auctions and live commerce
- iGaming and interactive entertainment
- Corporate events and town halls
- Near real-time sports and esports
MOQ from standards to production
Although MOQ is still being standardised within the IETF (called MOQT – T for Transport) , it’s not just a future promise.
nanocosmos has MOQ running in production, as the world’s first platform serving global customers since mid-2025.
“You can use MOQ in different use cases and, of course, for us it has a huge benefit and the most benefit in near real-time and ultra-low latency because that’s where we are focusing on. We tried it out, and we learned it’s working very well in these environments”, highlighted Oliver Lietz.
The message from the webinar was clear: innovation in live streaming doesn’t come from waiting—it comes from deploying, learning, and improving in real environments. “You don’t have to wait for standards. Deploy, learn, and evolve in production”, pointed Luke Curley.
MOQ and the Future of Live Streaming
MOQ isn’t about replacing everything overnight. Existing technologies like HLS, DASH, and even WebRTC may still play a role for video streaming.
However, MOQ opens the door to:
- More control over latency
- Better performance in real-world network conditions
- New formats that blend real-time interaction with broadcast reach
In short, Media over QUIC is helping live streaming move beyond fixed trade-offs and towards experiences that feel truly live.
Want to explore MOQ in action? Watch the full webinar session or try Media over QUIC with nanocosmos today.
