Traditional radio broadcasting is limited in two aspects, station transmitter power, (100 miles) and the available broadcast spectrum (a local area might feature twenty odd stations). In contrast, Internet radio has no geographic limitations and can travel the length and breadth of cyberspace. In addition, Internet radio is not limited to audio. Internet broadcasts can include photos, graphics, text, links, message boards and chat rooms. This advance creates greater interactivity between diverse groups, such as advertisers and consumers or trainers and students, for example. Live365 has taken advantage of this tenchnology, creating a community with Message Boards, Chat and Member Profiles. Users of this service can share tips, station discoveries, technical information and more.

Transmitting audio over the Internet is a relatively simple task. Here’s how it works. Audio enters the sound card of the broadcaster. From there, the encoder translates the audio into a streaming format, samples the incoming audio and compresses it for distribution over the Internet. From there, the server sends the audio data stream out over the Internet to a users computer, where a plug-in or player software translates the audio data stream into sound that the listener can hear.

Audio can be delivered by two methods, downloads or streaming media. Downloaded audio files are stored on the user’s computer. MP3 is the most popular format, but any audio format will work. In contrast, streaming audio is played but not stored. During live broadcasts, the encoder and streamer must work together in real time, which requires a dedicated server and uses large amounts of computing resources.

For this purpose, Live365 offers several broadcasting options. These include live feed from their computers, stored feed that broadcasters have uploaded to Live365’s servers and relayed broadcasts coming from other sites that can be listed in the Live365 broadcast directory.

There are two main broadcasting services, commercial and personal. The commercial service is designed for organizations, businesses, etc., who want to broadcast from their websites. This service creates a customized play list that pops up in the browser window of the user. On the website of the organization, users make selections from the play list and can listen to Internet radio broadcasts. The sites are included in the Live365 directory, which is available to listeners in 100 countries. Broadcast365 is available in basic and premium versions and customers have access to listener data.