GoPro video footage can now be broadcast using Twitter's Periscope app

Periscope attracted 10 million users in its first four months, and GoPro has produced a diverse mix of viral videos. Photograph: Alamy

GoPro action camera users can now broadcast their daring adventures live through Twitter's Periscope app, opening the door to a whole new dimension of real-time video sharing.

The live-streaming app announced on Tuesday that it was now integrated with GoPro, meaning that the sometimes insane footage captured on wearable cameras can now find a much larger audience – one that is drawn to the attraction of watching events on their phones as the action unfolds.

With the new feature, people with GoPro cameras can connect their devices to WiFi, open Periscope on an iPhone, tap the "broadcast" button and immediately go live. With a double tap, users can switch between broadcasting from the GoPro and the smartphone camera, and the GoPro will continue to record the footage while it streams.

Periscope – the app that attracted 10 million users in its first four months last year – has enabled journalists, entertainers, politicians and others to broadcast live to the public directly from their phones.

Reporters armed with Periscope have live-streamed coverage of the Syrian refugee crisis. Presidential candidates have submitted to Periscope interviews and live-stream campaign blitzes, allowing smartphone users across the globe to watch raw, up-close footage of celebrities in action.

GoPro technology has produced a diverse mix of incredible and comical viral videos that would have seemed unimaginable years ago.

Animals have had GoPros attached to their bodies, in some cases providing a spontaneous bird's-eye view of flight. Base jumpers with GoPros have enabled viewers to experience frightening feats from the viewpoint of the jumpers. And GoPro has given astronauts an opportunity to share their spacewalk missions with the world.

The marriage of Periscope and GoPro will likely give users of both technologies creative new ways to share their videos and experiences.

On a basic level, the integration means that some of the very precarious uses of the video streaming site will become a lot easier for GoPro owners. As Periscope noted in its announcement, users who were previously attaching their iPhones to drones and balloons – or submerging them under water – can now switch to GoPro as a much more reliable option.

The opportunities for live-streaming extreme sports are also extensive. The GoPro team said it plans to broadcast live with Periscope at the upcoming X Games in Aspen, Colorado.

The new feature comes on the heels of Twitter's announcement that it has integrated Periscope directly into Twitter feeds, meaning 'scopers can easily get their streams in front of their followers and Twitter users can watch live footage without leaving the app.

Alex Khoshnevissan, head of business operations at Periscope, said on Tuesday that the partnership could create new streaming tools in a number of industries. "We know that adventure broadcasts will be more immersive; we're also looking forward to what the multi-camera setup will enable in journalism, comedy and in new areas we have yet to consider," he said in an email.

It's easy to imagine how journalists with drones, GoPros and Periscope accounts could someday be able to provide real-time footage from major events in a way that uniquely enhances live storytelling.

Cute pets could dramatically grow their audiences with live streams that let viewers experience the world through the eyes of dogs and cats for hours on end. Drunk scoping could become much bolder.

And the most terrifying, heart-stopping GoPro videos – ones that offer a window into the lives of extreme athletes and tend to blow up on social media – could also draw significantly bigger crowds via Periscope. After all, the stakes are much higher when a daredevil stunt is streaming live in your Twitter feed.

Source: GoPro video footage can now be broadcast using Twitter's Periscope app