# Direct output (/docs/direct-output)



VISP Direct forwards one publishing device to Twitch, Kick, or both, without
OBS in the path. It is opt-in per device and currently limited beta: access is
handed out per account because the relay is a single node and Direct runs the
platform encode there.

## What changes [#what-changes]

Without Direct, your device does the full encode and the relay forwards that
bitstream to OBS untouched. With Direct enabled on a device:

* your device still encodes, because SRT needs a compressed feed to upload;
* the relay runs a **separate distribution encode per destination** — H.264
  video and stereo AAC audio, always re-encoded, never stream-copied;
* each destination is its own process, so one platform failing does not
  interrupt the other.

VISP Native uses a lower Direct contribution bitrate while keeping 1080p
available; platform quality comes from the relay encode.

Streaming to both platforms doubles relay CPU and outbound bandwidth. It does
not add a second upload from your phone.

## Enable it [#enable-it]

1. On the dashboard, open **Direct output**.
2. Next to Twitch or Kick, choose **Authorize streaming**. This re-opens the
   provider's consent screen and asks for permission to read your stream key.
   VISP requests every permission you had already granted at the same time, so
   authorizing Direct never switches off chat or title and category editing.
3. Pick **Off**, **Twitch**, **Kick**, or **Both** for the device.

Outputs are saved per device and can only be changed while that device is
offline. One device may own a given platform at a time — Twitch on your phone
and Kick on a second device is allowed, two devices publishing to Twitch is
not.

## Your stream key [#your-stream-key]

You are never asked to paste a stream key. At stream start VISP fetches it from
Twitch or Kick with the consent you granted, builds the destination URL in
memory, hands it to the forwarding process, and drops it when the stream ends.
It is never sent to the web or phone app and never stored as its own database
value.

The relay-to-OBS workflow is unchanged and still never touches a stream key.

## Using OBS at the same time [#using-obs-at-the-same-time]

OBS can keep reading the feed for monitoring or recording. Do not point OBS at
a platform that Direct already owns — that is two publishers on one stream key,
and the platform will reject or interrupt one of them.

What OBS reads is your device's contribution feed, not the encode the platform
receives. To check what viewers actually see, watch the platform.

## Platform rules [#platform-rules]

* **Twitch.** Its simulcasting terms prohibit showing another platform's
  activity on the Twitch stream, so do not burn Kick chat into the video.
  Floating chat in the phone app stays fine — only you see it.
* **Kick.** Partners must switch on Kick's own Multistreaming toggle before
  streaming to both. Kick currently reduces Partner Program payout for the
  duration of a multistreaming session. VISP does not toggle this for you.

Title and category editing is unchanged; Direct adds no metadata behavior.

## When something fails [#when-something-fails]

Each destination shows its own state and last error under the device.

* **A provider is unavailable.** VISP retries that destination with backoff and
  leaves the other one running.
* **Permission was revoked at the platform.** The destination fails and the
  card offers **Reauthorize**.
* **"Direct is at capacity."** The relay is at its concurrent-forwarder limit.
  Your relay-to-OBS path keeps working; try the Direct output again shortly.
* **VISP is unreachable when your device connects.** No Direct output starts.
  A stream already running keeps forwarding until the source disconnects.