Apps go beyond selfies, with live TV broadcasts starring you

Tyra Banks smiled a toothy grin and chatted idly with a captive audience earlier this week, showing off her new pixie haircut. She later flipped a blond-streaked auburn lock at the crowd, asking in a half-mocking tone, “How do you like me now?”

Banks was not on the set of her daytime television show or modeling on the runway at New York Fashion Week. She was staring into her smartphone camera while using a test version of Periscope, a live-streaming video app that Twitter introduced on Thursday, one among a surge of such apps with names like Meerkat and Camio that are taking the social media world by storm.

The premise of Periscope, Meerkat and others is simple: Capture video of yourself doing anything from exploring a new city to playing with your dog, all using nothing more than your smartphone camera. The apps notify others that you are streaming live video of yourself, and you can share it with your friends and followers.

http://www.startribune.com/business/297740111.html