Exploring a new revenue path for live events through private streaming, chat, and responsive viewing
Role
Product Design + Frontend Prototyping
Team
3-person studio + Evolve team
Timeline
2026 · Prototype · In development
Tools
Figma, Paper, OBS, Next.js, PostgreSQL
Scope
Interface architecture, Responsive prototype, Local technical proof
Outcome
Responsive streaming concept validated with a local OBS + HLS technical proof.
Key decision
Keep the video experience primary and move secondary participation into on-demand surfaces.
Trade-off
Prototype credibility required separating tested facts from revenue and engagement hypotheses.
Next measure
Spectator testing and live-event usage need to happen before claiming product impact.
Context
A combat-sports organization with physical and digital ambitions
Evolve organizes combat-sports events—grappling, martial arts, and shooting—and needed a digital presence that could do more than sell tickets. The team was already building a landing page, ticket purchasing, and fighter registration when a new product question emerged: how could a remote audience access a private broadcast without separating it from the event experience?
My responsibility focused on exploring that product line—a private pay-per-view streaming experience—and supporting visual improvements to the public event website.
Challenge
The video still had to be the product
A broadcast needs space, stability, and clear controls. At the same time, the concept explored participation through chat, voting, and event information beside the player.
On desktop these modules could coexist laterally. On mobile, they competed for limited space and risked degrading the main viewing experience.
Designing more interaction does not mean showing all of it at once.
Evidence and hypotheses
Separate what we knew from what we expected
The direction came from the client brief, team reviews, and streaming-platform benchmarks. Spectator interviews and usability tests have not happened yet.
The ability to extend event reach beyond the venue, create participation through interaction, and build trust with real event content remain design hypotheses until they are tested.
A product hypothesis connecting access, video, and participation modules.
Key decisions
Prototype independently, integrate deliberately
An independent streaming module
The streaming interface was separated from the existing backend so its hierarchy could be explored without presenting unfinished integrations as complete.
Event-aware states
The concept covers before, live, and post-event states around the player, participants, chat, and voting.
Video-first mobile hierarchy
Secondary interactions move into on-demand surfaces so the player remains readable and usable on a narrow screen.
Local technical proof with OBS + HLS
I set up a local Next.js server with PostgreSQL, connected it to an OBS stream via HLS, and validated that the concept could receive a real video signal before selecting a final provider.
Public event context supporting the private streaming experience.
A video-first layout with optional participation modules on demand.
The product hierarchy changes across before, live, and post-event states.
Visual direction
From generic imagery to real event context
I supported the team in shifting from generic stock imagery toward event cards, fighter profiles, and real content that grounded the experience in the actual product. The intent was to improve context and perceived legitimacy.
The live event site at evolvegrapplingpro.com now features real fighter photographs, flag indicators, event schedules, and integrated ticket purchasing—a significant step forward from the initial generic direction.
Using real event content improves trust and context over generic alternatives.
Current state
Landing and ticketing live; streaming prototype validated
The public landing page, ticket purchasing, and fighter registration are live at evolvegrapplingpro.com. These were built by the broader team with my support on visual direction and UX improvements.
The streaming experience remains in development and has not been used in a live event. The verified result of my contribution is a responsive prototype and a successful local OBS + HLS technical test, not a live platform or a new revenue stream.
Local technical test with OBS and HLS; sensitive routes and keys were replaced.
Reflection
Prototype credibility depends on precise language
→Separating hypothesis, prototype, and implementation protects the credibility of the work.
→Information architecture and error states should be defined before backend decisions harden.
→In dense interfaces, hierarchy matters more than the number of features.
→The next phase needs spectator testing and measurement defined before the first event.
