There is some bad news for the people who still use Google+ Hangouts on Air for their livestreaming needs. As of September 12, Google will be killing off Hangouts on Air … well, sort of. The livestreaming portal will continue to exist, but the actual livestreaming element will be handled entirely by YouTube live going forward.

Unfortunately for users, the transition will involve more than just a few behind the scenes changes, as there are a number of existing Hangouts with Air features that will be getting left behind when Google makes the switch. Most notably, the platform’s popular Q&A feature, which allows viewers to pose questions directly to streamers, will be going away. Google notes that a similar feature is available through Google Slides, but YouTube live has no native support for it. Instead, streamers will need to create a Google Slides presentation and manually incorporate it into their broadcast to access the Q&A feature.

Hangouts on Air will also be losing both its Showcase and its Applause features, and there does not seem to be any first-party option to replace these.

Google’s move is yet another example of the company’s continuing shift away from Google Plus, the social network that Google had repeatedly tried to force on users by integrating it into a number of their most popular products, including Gmail and YouTube. For example, the company recently removed the requirement for a Google Plus account to be able to leave a review on the Play Store.

Using Hangouts with Air after the switch

While Hangouts on Air will be losing some of its existing functionality, users will still be able to stream through the platform, but the process will be a little different thanks to the transition to YouTube. Here is how to use stream with Hangouts on Air after the switch in September, according to Google’s support page:

1. Go to Live Streaming Events in Creator Studio.
2. Click New live event.
3. Select Quick (using Google Hangouts On Air).
4. Give your live stream a title.
5. Click Go live now or enter in details to schedule your event for later.
6. Use Hangouts to broadcast live.

Photo by Rego – d4u.hu