What is WebRTC?

Web Real-Time Communication (WebRTC) is an industry effort to enhance web browsing by allowing direct peer-to-peer exchange of real-time media through secure access to input peripherals like webcams and microphones. Unlike traditional client-server architecture, WebRTC enables data exchange among N peers without a server in the middle. It comes built-in with HTML 5 and can be accessed through the WebRTC API. WebRTC has broad applicability, including peer-to-peer video, audio, and screen sharing; file exchange; IoT applications like drone streaming and surveillance systems; entertainment and audience engagement; and real-time language processing. Key features of WebRTC include MediaStream for accessing streams from local input devices, RTCPeerConnection for connecting to peers, and RTCDataChannel for exchanging generic data in a bidirectional, peer-to-peer fashion. WebRTC is often compared to WebSockets, which enables bidirectional communication between web clients and servers over a persistent single-socket connection. While WebSocket works on top of TCP, WebRTC primarily uses UDP for faster performance but with less reliability. Both technologies can complement each other in real-time applications. Major organizations like Google Meets, Zoom, Skype, Facebook (Chat, Messenger, Live), Gatheround, Discord, Bevy, and Snapchat use WebRTC. Ably provides robust and easy-to-use APIs for powering live and collaborative experiences using WebRTC.