Putting Your Voice on the Internet: Should I Podcast or Stream Internet Radio?
I'm often asked by visitors to this site how to start an Internet radio station. But, often they are over-thinking it. Offering audio on the Internet can be done in many ways and it just keeps getting easier.
Podcasts are easy to do whether you DIY with an audio editor and your own website or use a third-party to create it and host it. A Podcast allows you to create a "chunk" of audio programming which can be accessed on-demand. The original idea of subscribing to Podcasts has become diluted. Sure, thousands of podcasts can still be "subscribed" to and the audio is automatically delivered to your computer.
But, now, just placing an audio file online at your website and informing users to "click to listen" to your "Podcast on-demand" is sufficient. Most browsers know how to handle and stream an audio file that is clicked on.
Thanks to broadband, the moment your audio file begins playing uninterrupted through the end-users player, you have achieved the same effect as Internet Radio.
If it looks like a duck and quacks like a duck - it's a duck.
If you think creating Podcasts is for you, next decide what level of complexity do you wish to deal with: your own website and domain with files you create, tweak, and upload or do you want to have less nuts and bolts to worry about?
Using a third-party service can be very convenient but you will be subject to their user agreement plus you may have ads inserted into your podcast or your podcast page at their site may be surrounded by ads you and other content you don't like.
On this other hand, creating your own domain and placing your podcast on some Internet "real estate" you own will allow you to call the shots and surround your content with ads that can actual make you money, not a third party.
Podcasts are easy to do whether you DIY with an audio editor and your own website or use a third-party to create it and host it. A Podcast allows you to create a "chunk" of audio programming which can be accessed on-demand. The original idea of subscribing to Podcasts has become diluted. Sure, thousands of podcasts can still be "subscribed" to and the audio is automatically delivered to your computer.
But, now, just placing an audio file online at your website and informing users to "click to listen" to your "Podcast on-demand" is sufficient. Most browsers know how to handle and stream an audio file that is clicked on.
Thanks to broadband, the moment your audio file begins playing uninterrupted through the end-users player, you have achieved the same effect as Internet Radio.
If it looks like a duck and quacks like a duck - it's a duck.
If you think creating Podcasts is for you, next decide what level of complexity do you wish to deal with: your own website and domain with files you create, tweak, and upload or do you want to have less nuts and bolts to worry about?
Using a third-party service can be very convenient but you will be subject to their user agreement plus you may have ads inserted into your podcast or your podcast page at their site may be surrounded by ads you and other content you don't like.
On this other hand, creating your own domain and placing your podcast on some Internet "real estate" you own will allow you to call the shots and surround your content with ads that can actual make you money, not a third party.
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