Streaming Audio Radio Stations: Transmitting Internet Quality
Radio has become a constant companion in this rush-filled, technology-driven life. Thus, streaming audio radio stations is a term that stands for radio stations that transmit streaming audio to the listeners, in short, Internet radio stations. Now to throw some more light on it, streaming audio stations provide an audio broadcasting service that is transmitted through the Internet. The term used for the process of broadcasting through the Internet is web casting, because the process of broadcasting is purely wireless and instead involves the Internet.
* History
Streaming audio radio stations or Internet radio started in the 1990's. The first streaming audio radio station was developed in 1993, but it was not greeted well by the listeners. This can be attributed to the poor sound quality provided by the station because of the problems with the bandwidth and the phone lines.
* Breakthrough
The real breakthrough came in the year 1998, when President Clinton signed the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. This act had a special set of rules for Internet broadcasters for the use of copyrighted material. The laws forbid the Internet operators from permitting any free download without the consent of the copyright owner.
* New Era
The final years of the 1990s saw the advent of thousands of Internet radio stations. By the mid 2000's, the streaming audio radio stations or Internet radio became a growing phenomenon. Currently, the number of stations rest at five figures. Some of the major networks are Yahoo's Launchcast, Shoutcast and Live365. * Provided services
Streaming audio radio stations provide their listeners with a continuous stream of audio, like the normal radio stations even these stations have no control over the audio stream. Some people have a misconception that streaming audio radio stations also serve the purpose of Podcasting. However, this is not true. Another fact to be understood is that these streaming audio radio stations dont indulge in on -demand file serving. These streaming audio radio stations can be easily accessed from anywhere in the world. This is one of the main reasons behind its popularity, because people usually get bored of their local radio stations and most of the time, their program quality is not very good. Streaming audio radio stations on the other hand offer everything from news, sports to nearly all the genres of music, what's more the program quality is also exceptionally good. The streaming radio stations are very expensive to run and maintain and till now the owners of these stations have not been able to find any viable option to meet their expanses. With music and Internet dominating every sphere of modern life, the fact remains that streaming audio radio stations has caught up the fancy of most people in a big way due to which we can say that there is bright scope for potential opportunities and improvements in the future.
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