Campground
Listen Parties
A core feature of Campground is Listen Parties. This underpins the notion that music should be social, even when you can't be physically in the same place.
Listen Parties comprise two main components: synchronized music playback, and a persistent voice call so that people can spontaneously talk as if they're in the same room. Talking over a voice call while music is playing introduces complex audio issues like masking (can't hear the person because music is too loud), echo, and other issues introduced by operating system limitations (e.g. iOS and Android aren't meant to have calls + music simultaneously).
Fortunately, Synervoz are experts in this area. In fact, Listen Parties are how we got started as a company. A journey we shared with our friends at Campground.
What we did
The Switchboard SDK is at the heart of Campground. It's audio engine allows for the mixing and management of multiple audio streams such as the VoIP connections and the music in real time.
Voice activity detection and auto-ducking (reducing music volume when someone talks) are among many important features provided by the Switchboard SDK.
We were also closely involved with the development team on a daily basis and contributed to many features and aspects of the app development.
In Conclusion...
Campground is one of the early examples of a behavior that is set to get much more popular.
Imagine connecting your living room together with your friends and family so that you can have remote parties or just feel a little more like you're hanging out in the same place. As a few more pieces fall into place with smart speakers, TVs, and AI assistants to help you control your connections -- this type of behavior will go mainstream. Synervoz and Campground will have paved the way.
All prototypes courtesy of Campground.