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Wowza Review

Depends

Should I use Wowza?

Build mission critical video streaming infrastructure with flexible video server solutions for live and on demand streaming. - wowza.com

· 1 month ago

Buy if you're an engineering team needing self-managed, deploy-anywhere streaming infrastructure. Skip it if you just need to host webinars — a hosted platform or your video-call tool is far simpler.

Confidence

Medium. Based on ~20 public sources; many review snippets were truncated, so ratings and price figures are limited.

Ratings

  • Value for money
  • Ease of use
  • Feature depth
  • Support quality
  • Security posture

Pricing

Usage-based, quote only

Wowza Video

ModelNot disclosed
Monthly feesNot disclosed
HardwareNot disclosed
Free tierNo
Wowza Streaming EngineContact sales (per-instance)
Premium SupportSeparate paid plans

Best for

  • Broadcasters needing on-prem or air-gapped streaming
  • Developers embedding live video into products
  • Government and surveillance video at scale
  • Teams with dedicated streaming engineers

Not for

  • Small teams streaming occasional webinars
  • Solo creators — setup and pricing are serious overkill
  • Anyone wanting zero-config hosted streaming
  • Orgs without ops staff to patch a streaming server

Gotchas - check before you buy

high

Streaming Engine had 2024 RCE and path traversal CVEs — run v4.9+ or you're exposed

medium

No free tier; costs scale with instances and usage — real numbers need a sales call

medium

Premium support is a separate purchase with four paid tiers

low

Owned by private equity Clearhaven — expect pricing pressure over time

Pros and cons

Pros

  • Deploys on-prem, cloud, edge, or air-gapped environments
  • Called "solid, capable" in independent marketplace reviews
  • End-users reported happy on AWS deployments
  • Updated WebRTC support for production-scale cloud-native streaming
  • Rapid7-disclosed 2024 flaws were patched in v4.9

Cons

  • No free version of Wowza Video
  • Requires real engineering; sysadmins constantly ask for alternatives
  • 2024 vulnerabilities included remote code execution
  • Pricing not public; special pricing requires contacting sales

Sources & method

- 10 sources - Real CVE history including a 2024 RCE — all Rapid7-disclosed flaws fixed in v4.9; patch discipline required.

official x1review x5security x3news x1
  • CVE-2024-52052 — remote code execution, RCE in Streaming Engine disclosed November 2024; fixed in v4.9.
  • CVE-2024-52056 — path traversal, Path traversal in the Manager component of Streaming Engine.
  • CVE-2016-20034 — privilege escalation, Older privilege escalation flaw in Streaming Engine 4.x.

Key stats

  • Value for money: 2/5

    Rating

  • Usage-based, quote only

    Starting price

  • 10

    Sources

  • Analyzed

  • Value for money: 2/5. Usage-based pricing; reviewers repeatedly cite cheaper rivals
  • Ease of use: 2/5. Self-managed server; sysadmins hunt for simpler alternatives
  • Feature depth: 4/5. Multi-environment deployment, WebRTC, low-latency delivery
  • Support quality: 3/5. Solid reputation, but premium support is a paid add-on
  • Security posture: 3/5. Real CVE history, but flaws get disclosed and patched
  • 151 G2 reviews across Wowza products
  • None Free tier Wowza Video has no free version
  • PE-backed Ownership Clearhaven Partners bought it from Summit Partners
  • 4 modes Deployment On-prem, cloud, edge, air-gapped

Pricing

Wowza Video

Usage-based, quote only

  • Pay-as-you-go streaming
  • No free version

Wowza Streaming Engine

Not disclosed

  • Self-hosted server license
  • AWS Marketplace available

Premium Support

Separate paid plans

  • Four tiers
  • Sold apart from licenses

Security

Real CVE history including a 2024 RCE — all Rapid7-disclosed flaws fixed in v4.9; patch discipline required.

  • CVE-2024-52052 — remote code executionRCE in Streaming Engine disclosed November 2024; fixed in v4.9.⁴
  • CVE-2024-52056 — path traversalPath traversal in the Manager component of Streaming Engine.⁵
  • CVE-2016-20034 — privilege escalationOlder privilege escalation flaw in Streaming Engine 4.x.

What users say

Reviewers call Wowza solid, capable streaming infrastructure, but a steady stream of sysadmins and self-hosters hunt for cheaper or simpler alternatives.

“Wowza is a solid, capable”
AWS Marketplace review

Companies that use it

  • Granicus
  • AthletesGoLive
  • Freeman
  • Blueforce Development
  • AngelEye Health
Full analysis

Based on ~20 public sources; many review snippets were truncated, so ratings and price figures are limited.

Pro-grade, deploy-anywhere streaming engine. Great for engineers; overkill if you just want to stream a webinar.

Methodology

Based on ~20 public sources; many review snippets were truncated, so ratings and price figures are limited.

Read how a report is made.

Sources

  1. Wowza Streaming Reviews — G2g2.com
    review
  2. Wowza Streaming Engine — AWS Marketplace reviewsaws.amazon.com
    review
  3. Multiple Vulnerabilities in Wowza Streaming Engine (Fixed) — Rapid7rapid7.com
    security
  4. CVE-2024-52052 — SentinelOnesentinelone.com
    security
  5. CVE-2024-52056 — NVDnvd.nist.gov
    security
  6. Wowza Video — SoftwareAdvicesoftwareadvice.ie
    review
  7. Wowza Streaming Engine — Capterracapterra.com
    review
  8. Clearhaven Invests in Wowza Media Systemsclearhavenpartners.com
    news
  9. Castr vs Wowza — Reddit r/VIDEOENGINEERINGreddit.com
    review
  10. Wowza Streaming Engine Pricingwowza.com
    official

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