The live edge is the most recently available part of a live media presentation that a player can access. Viewers usually play some distance behind it to allow time for production, encoding, delivery and buffering. Being closer to the live edge can reduce delay but leaves less room to absorb interruptions.
A practical example
Two viewers following the same match may hear a goal at different times because their players hold different amounts of content behind the newest available segment. Both can still be watching the same live broadcast through different delivery paths.
A common misunderstanding
The newest available internet segment is already behind the event's physical moment. A player setting cannot remove every source of production, encoding or network delay.
Related terms
Stable technical definition. Editorial approach