Icecast

Icecast is a streaming media project released as free software maintained by the Xiph.Org Foundation. It also refers specifically to the server program which is part of the project. Icecast was created in December 1998/January 1999 by Jack Moffitt<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="icecast-news">Template:Cite web</ref> and Barath Raghavan<ref name="icecast-news" /> to provide an open-source audio streaming server that anyone could modify, use, and tinker with. Version 2, a ground-up rewrite aimed at multi-format support (initially targeting Ogg Vorbis) and scalability, was started in 2001 and released in January 2004.<ref name="icecast-news" />

History

Template:Unreferenced section Icecast was originally developed by Moffitt in 1998 for SMU's radio station. At the time, the station was constantly losing its FCC licenseTemplate:Citation needed and was at the time only able to reach listeners in the same building. Given that all of the dorms throughout campus had Ethernet connectivity, using streaming audio to broadcast was a natural solution, but currently available audio streaming software, such as RealAudio, was too expensive. Moffitt created Icecast, allowing the station to easily reach everywhere on campus without the necessity of FCC licensing or a transmitter upgrade. Initially developed to support mp3 files, Vorbis support was added shortly after.

Technical details

The Icecast server is capable of streaming audio content as Opus or Vorbis<ref name="icecast">Template:Cite web</ref> over standard HTTP, video as WebM or Theora<ref name="icecast" /> over HTTP, and MP3,<ref name="icecast" /> AAC,<ref name="icecast-news" /> and NSV<ref name="icecast-news" /> over the SHOUTcast protocol. Theora, AAC, and NSV are only supported in version 2.2.0 and newer.

Icecast requires external programs, called "source clients", to originate the streams,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and the Icecast project includes a source client program known as IceS.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The source runs typically in the place where the audio is generated (e.g., a studio) and the Icecast server where a high-bandwidth connection is available (e.g., a colocation centre). Since version 2.4.0 source clients can use plain HTTP standard PUT requests instead of the custom SOURCE method.<ref name="icecast-news" />

Supported file formats

Source Clients	Input Formats						Output Formats
	MP3	AAC	Ogg Vorbis	Ogg Opus	FLAC	WAV	MP3	AAC/AAC+	Ogg Vorbis	Ogg Opus	Ogg FLAC	NSV video	Ogg Theora video	WebM video
IceS 0.4	Template:Yes	Template:No	Template:Yes	Template:No	Template:No	Template:No	Template:Yes	Template:No	Template:No	Template:No	Template:No	Template:No	Template:No	Template:No
IceS 2.0	Template:No	Template:No	Template:Yes	Template:No	Template:No	Template:No	Template:No	Template:No	Template:Yes	Template:No	Template:No	Template:No	Template:Yes	Template:No
Liquidsoap<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:No	Template:Yes	Template:Yes
Live DSP Input	Template:N/a	Template:N/a	Template:N/a	Template:N/a	Template:N/a	Template:N/a	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:Yes
Rocket Broadcaster Pro<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>	Template:N/a	Template:N/a	Template:N/a	Template:N/a	Template:N/a	Template:N/a	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:No	Template:No	Template:No
Broadcast Using This Tool<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	Template:N/a	Template:N/a	Template:N/a	Template:N/a	Template:N/a	Template:N/a	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:No	Template:No	Template:No
iziCast<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:No	Template:No	Template:No	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:No	Template:Yes	Template:No	Template:No	Template:No
Cool Mic<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:No	Template:Yes	Template:No	Template:No	Template:Yes	Template:Yes	Template:No	Template:No	Template:No	Template:No

See also

• List of streaming media systems
• SHOUTcast
• Peercasting
• Edcast

External links

• Template:Official website
• article in Streaming Media magazine: The Birth of Icecast