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The term podcast, like " Radio ", can mean both the content and the method of delivery. The host or author of a podcast is often referred to as a "podcaster". Podcasters' web sites may also offer direct Download or Streaming of their files, however a podcast is distinguished by its ability to be downloaded automatically using software capable of reading RSS or Atom feeds. Usually the podcast features one type of "show", with new episodes either sporadically or at planned intervals, such as daily or weekly. In addition to this, there are podcast networks that feature multiple shows on the same feed. Podcasting's essence is about creating content (audio or video) for an audience that wants to listen or watch when they want, where they want, and how they want. NAME "Podcasting" is a " and " Broadcasting ." While the name was primarily associated with audio subscriptions in 2004, the RSS enclosure syndication technique had been used with video files since 2001, before portable video players were widely available. Atom , a recently developed web syndication format, supports rich media content by design, as does standard RSS 2.0 based upon XML 1.0 standards. In fact, any file with a URL , including still images and text, can be delivered via a web feed. Use of "podcast" to describe both audio and video feeds seemed natural to some users, while others preferred to reserve the word for audio and coin new terms for video subscriptions. Other "pod-" derived neologisms include "podcasters" for individuals or organizations offering feeds, and "podcatchers" for special RSS Aggregators with the ability to transfer the files to media player software or hardware. Neither podcasting nor listening to podcasts requires an iPod or other portable player, and no over-the-air broadcasting is required. The name association came about simply because Apple Computer 's iPod was the most marketed and the best-selling portable digital audio player when podcasting began, and was used by early practitioners. However, the use of the "pod" name in 2004 probably played a part Gruber, John. " Is That a Podcast in Your Pocket? ", speculates that the word itself played a significant part in Apple's decision to add podcasting support to iTunes. in Apple's development of podcasting products and services in 2005, further linking the device and the activity in the news media. The editors of the New Oxford American Dictionary declared "podcasting" the 2005 word of the year, defining the term as "a digital recording of a radio broadcast or similar program, made available on the Internet for downloading to a personal audio player".Oxford University Press, 2005-12-05 Podcast is word of the year From the beginning various writers suggested other names or alternative interpretations of the letters "P-O-D." Technology writer , which was not always the case. Another Apple rival in the portable audio and video market, Creative Technology , began using the "Personal On Demand" interpretation, while offering its own "Zencasts." Creative "Zencast" Podcasts Other terms have been suggested, but had shortcomings -- " Audioblogging ," "audio magazines" and "webcasting" could describe other forms of media distribution, and "rsscasting" would be difficult to pronounce. Podcasting as a medium was first associated with, but never limited to, audio data. As use of RSS enclosures for video spread in 2005, podcasting of video data was called, among other things, "video blogging", "video podcasting", "vidcasting", " Vlog ging", " Vodcast ing", or "videocasting". MECHANICS The publish/subscribe model of podcasting is a version of Push Technology , in that the information provider chooses which files to offer in a feed and the subscriber chooses among available feed channels. While the user is not "pulling" individual files from the Web, there is a strong "pull" aspect in that the receiver is free to subscribe to (or unsubscribe from) a vast array of channels. Earlier Internet "push" services (e.g., PointCast ) allowed a much more limited selection of content. Podcasting is an automatic mechanism by which multimedia Computer File s are transferred from a Server to a Client , which pulls down XML files containing the Internet addresses of the media files. In general, these files contain Audio or Video , but also could be Images , text, PDF , or any file type. A ''podcast'' is generally analogous to a recorded television or radio series. The content provider begins by making a file (for example, an MP3 audio file) available on the Internet. This is usually done by posting the file on a publicly-available Webserver ; however, BitTorrent trackers also have been used, and it is not technically necessary that the file be publicly accessible. The only requirement is that the file be accessible through some known URI (a general-purpose Internet Address ). This file is often referred to as one ''episode'' of a podcast. The content provider then acknowledges the existence of that file by referencing it in another file known as the ''feed''. The feed is a machine-readable list of the URIs by which episodes of the show may be accessed. This list is usually published in RSS format (although Atom can also be used), which provides other information, such as publish dates, titles, and accompanying text descriptions of the series and each of its episodes. The feed may contain entries for all episodes in the series, but is typically limited to a short list of the most recent episodes, as is the case with many news feeds. Standard podcasts consist of a feed from one author. More recently multiple authors have been able to contribute episodes to a single podcast feed using concepts such as Public Podcasting and Social Podcasting . The content provider posts the feed to a known location on a webserver. (Unlike the episode file itself, the feed is published to a webserver, usually not by other means.) The location at which the feed is posted is expected to be permanent. This location is known as the ''feed URI'' (or, perhaps more often, ''feed URL ''). The content provider makes this feed URI known to the intended audience. A consumer enters this feed URI into a software program called a '' Podcatcher '' or '' Aggregator '' (the former term is specific to podcasting while the latter is general to all programs which collect news from feeds). This program retrieves and processes data from the feed URI. A podcatcher is usually an always-on program which starts when the computer is started and runs in the background. It manages a set of feed URIs added by the user and downloads each at a specified interval, such as every two hours. If the feed data has substantively changed from when it was previously checked (or if the feed was just added to the podcatcher's list), the program determines the location of the most recent item and automatically downloads it to the user's computer. Some podcatchers, such as ITunes , also automatically make the newly downloaded episodes available to a user's portable media player. (This is only the typical behavior of a podcatcher; some podcatchers behave—or can be set to behave—differently.) The downloaded episodes can then be played, replayed, or archived as with any other computer file. Variants of the podcast include the marcast or Podcast Marketing. Podcast Marketing is the method of creating and publishing audio and video programs via the Internet. It allows a company's or marketer's users, clients, and customers to subscribe to a feed of new information about products and services. To conserve bandwidth, users may opt to search for content using an online podcast directory. Some directories allow people to listen online and initially become familiar with the content provided from an RSS Feed before deciding to subscribe and then downloading a huge amount of content, only to find out later that they didn't have any interest. For most broadband users, bandwidth is generally not given a second thought, however, there are still a number of computers which are connected to the Internet using a dial-up connection. HISTORY See Also: History of Podcasting OTHER USES Podcasting's initial appeal was to allow individuals to distribute their own "radio shows," but the system is increasingly used for other reasons, including:
PODCASTING AND MUSIC ROYALTIES From the beginning, the use of licensed music in podcasts has been a delicate legal issue. Regular radio-based podcasts Regular radio broadcasters' podcasts (and MP3 file downloads without subscription fees) have run into complications regarding royalties for incidental music on "talk" broadcasts, even when identical programs are "streamed." The broadcasters apparently believe companies that license the music will challenge its use in easily downloaded MP3 files, while "streaming" is closer to a broadcasting model. For example, when popular U.S. conservative commentator Rush Limbaugh began offering podcasts early in 2005, his employer, Premiere Radio Networks , tightened its editing of intro and Bumper Music , which it previously had allowed on other MP3 files. One effect was to render some of Premiere broadcaster Glenn Beck 's podcasts difficult to follow. He would appear to stop mid-sentence and restart in a different thought, because of cuts required to remove royalty-protected music. Similarly, Coast To Coast AM had its signature "intro" and "outro" music removed completely. Also, The Phil Hendrie Show would have its music and sound effects removed, often taking with it the more humorous lines of Phil Hendrie 's skits. Future licensing issues The US Congress is studying possible reforms to the Telecommunications Act Of 1996 , which may in the future affect broadband and Internet services. SEE ALSO
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