We’re excited to introduce Castio.Live 1.1.0, a major update that enhances the live streaming experience inside WordPress. This release focuses on smarter chat behavior, improved mobile usability, better admin workflows, and a refined freemium strategy.

Whether you’re running webinars, online courses, live events, or a community streaming platform, this update delivers meaningful improvements for both admins and viewers.

🎬 Video Preview Directly Inside WordPress Admin

Managing streams just became easier.

A new “Video Preview” meta box is now available on the castio_stream edit screen. It uses HLS playback (hls.js) to stream:

vod.m3u8 (recorded stream)
index.m3u8 (live playlist)

Benefits:

Preview streams without leaving WordPress admin
Instantly validate recorded VODs
Poster image support included
Faster moderation and content review

This streamlines the workflow for content creators and site administrators managing multiple live sessions.

💬 Smarter Live Chat Experience

🔔 Smart Scroll with New Message Notification

Castio.Live now prevents disruptive auto-scrolling.

If a viewer scrolls up to read earlier messages:

New messages no longer force the chat to jump down
A “▼ N new messages” notification appears
Clicking it scrolls smoothly to the latest message

This creates a modern, non-intrusive chat experience similar to leading messaging platforms.

📏 Adjustable Video & Chat Layout

A new vertical resize bar between the video player and chat panel allows users to:

Drag and adjust height split dynamically
Focus more on video or chat
Use mouse or touch (mobile supported)

This flexible layout improves engagement and user comfort across devices.

👥 Live User Count on Toggle Button

The Show/Hide Users button now displays the real-time connected user count, for example:

Hide Users (4)

This small improvement boosts engagement visibility and adds social proof to live sessions.

🔓 Freemium Model Update – Chat Is Now Free

Version 1.1.0 introduces an important strategic shift.

💚 Live Chat Available on All Plans

Chat is now fully available on the free plan
The old “Allow Chat (Premium)” restriction has been removed
No more disabled chat states

This lowers the barrier to entry and makes Castio.Live more accessible to new users.

⭐ Chat Moderation Remains Premium

Moderation tools now require an active premium license:

Ban users
Unban users
Delete messages
Access banned list
Moderation list endpoints

All moderation REST endpoints now enforce premium checks server-side, ensuring security and consistency.

Non-premium admins see a contextual upgrade notice inside the users sidebar, making the upgrade path clear and transparent.

😀 Emoji Picker Overhaul

The emoji system has been significantly improved.

What’s New:

Expanded from 8 to 32 emojis
Includes faces, hand gestures, and symbols
Improved layout and responsiveness

Technical Enhancements:

Popup appended to <body>
Uses position: fixed to avoid stacking issues
Escapes overflow: hidden clipping
Proper viewport clamping (6px margin safety)
Responsive grid:
- 8 columns on desktop
- 6 columns on small mobile screens

The result is a stable emoji picker that works correctly across browsers and devices, including mobile video rendering layers.

📱 Mobile UX Improvements

Castio.Live continues its mobile-first improvements:

Users panel becomes full-width on screens ≤640px
Messages are hidden when the users panel opens
Cleaner button styling with white chat controls
Send button remains visually distinct

The mobile experience now feels significantly more polished and intentional.

🛡 Improved Admin Safety & Logic

Admins can no longer ban themselves
Self-ban actions are silently disabled
Fixed incorrect can_moderate behavior for non-premium admins

These changes prevent accidental moderation errors and improve role consistency.

🔑 License Page Enhancements

The license management screen is now clearer and more professional:

Active license displayed as a green “✓ Active” badge
License key field becomes read-only when active
“Purchase Premium” button hides when license is valid
“Save & Verify” button always remains visible

This reduces confusion and improves the premium user experience.

📂 Cleaner Stream Listings

The


			
									
						
														
						
						
							poussin
															on test
																						Length: 02:24
														
                                								                                									Public
								                                									Logged-in only
															
													
					
									
						
														
						
						
							stream_186
															on test
																						Length: 00:06
														
                                								                                									Public
								                                									Logged-in only
															
													
					
									
						
														
						
						
							stream_184
																						Length: 00:06
														
                                								                                									Public
								                                							
													
					
									
						
														
						
						
							stream_180
															vuvu
																						Length: 00:06
														
                                								                                									Public
								                                							
													
					
									
						
														
						
						
							live stream
																						Length: 00:06
														
                                								                                									Password
								                                							
													
					
							
							
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shortcode now automatically skips any stream that does not have:

vod.m3u8
or index.m3u8

This keeps public stream listings clean and avoids broken or empty entries.

🛠 Bug Fixes in 1.1.0

Fixed emoji popup appearing behind <video> on mobile
Fixed emoji popup overflowing off-screen
Fixed incorrect moderation permissions
Removed outdated premium-lock references for chat

Why Castio.Live 1.1.0 Matters

This update makes Castio.Live:

More accessible (chat now free)
More professional (admin preview + license UX)
More stable (emoji and moderation fixes)
More user-friendly (smart scroll + layout resizing)
More mobile-optimized

If you are building a live streaming platform on WordPress and need integrated real-time chat, Castio.Live 1.1.0 delivers a smoother, smarter, and more scalable experience.

Upgrade to Castio.Live 1.1.0 Today

Update your plugin to unlock:

Smarter live chat behavior
Better mobile support
Stream previews in admin
A cleaner freemium model

Castio.Live continues to evolve into a powerful, flexible live streaming solution for WordPress.