diff --git a/plugins/rtmp-services/rtmp-common.c b/plugins/rtmp-services/rtmp-common.c
index 8256577e7..9079e07ae 100644
--- a/plugins/rtmp-services/rtmp-common.c
+++ b/plugins/rtmp-services/rtmp-common.c
@@ -467,9 +467,10 @@ static void initialize_output(struct rtmp_common *service, json_t *root,
 	json_t        *recommended;
 
 	if (!json_service) {
-		blog(LOG_WARNING, "rtmp-common.c: [initialize_output] "
-		                  "Could not find service '%s'",
-		                  service->service);
+		if (service->service && *service->service)
+			blog(LOG_WARNING, "rtmp-common.c: [initialize_output] "
+					  "Could not find service '%s'",
+					  service->service);
 		return;
 	}