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Icecast

{{Short description|Streaming media server}}

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{{Infobox software

| name = Icecast

| title =

| logo = Icecast logo large 2004.svg

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| developer = Xiph.Org Foundation

| released = {{Start date and age|1999}}

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| latest release version = {{wikidata|property|preferred|references|edit|Q946027|P348|P548=Q2804309}}

| latest release date = {{wikidata|qualifier|preferred|single|Q946027|P348|P548=Q2804309|P577}}

| latest preview version = {{wikidata|property|preferred|references|edit|Q946027|P348|P548=Q51930650}}

| latest preview date = {{wikidata|qualifier|preferred|single|Q946027|P348|P548=Q51930650|P577}}

| programming language = C

| operating system = Unix-like and Microsoft Windows

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| genre = streaming media server

| license = GPL-2.0-only

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| website = {{URL|https://icecast.org}}

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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{{cite web|url=http://metajack.im/about/|access-date=13 March 2015|title=about jack moffitt}}{{Cite web|url=http://icecast.org/news/|title=News Archive|access-date=13 March 2015}} and Barath Raghavan 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.

History

{{unreferenced section|date=April 2025}}

Icecast was originally developed by Moffitt in 1998 for SMU's radio station. At the time, the station was constantly losing its FCC license{{citation needed|date=July 2023}} 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{{cite web|url=http://icecast.org/|access-date=13 March 2015|title=Icecast}} over standard HTTP, video as WebM or Theora over HTTP, and MP3, AAC, and NSV 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,{{Cite web|url=http://icecast.org/docs/icecast-2.4.1/introduction.html|title=Icecast Docs - Introduction|access-date=13 March 2015}} and the Icecast project includes a source client program known as IceS.{{Cite web|url=http://icecast.org/ices|access-date=13 March 2015|title=IceS}} 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.

Supported file formats

class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align: center;"
rowspan="2" | Source Clients

! colspan="6" | Input Formats

! colspan="8" | Output Formats

style="width: 10%;" | MP3

! style="width: 10%;" | AAC

! style="width: 10%;" | Ogg Vorbis

! style="width: 10%;" | Ogg Opus

! style="width: 10%;" | FLAC

! style="width: 10%;" | WAV

! style="width: 10%;" | MP3

! style="width: 10%;" | AAC/AAC+

! style="width: 10%;" | Ogg Vorbis

! style="width: 10%;" | Ogg Opus

! style="width: 10%;" | Ogg FLAC

! style="width: 10%;" | NSV video

! style="width: 10%;" | Ogg Theora video

! style="width: 10%;" | WebM video

IceS 0.4

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IceS 2.0

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Liquidsoap{{Cite web|url=https://www.liquidsoap.info/doc-dev/encoding_formats.html|access-date=21 April 2022|title=Encoding formats - Liquidsoap}}

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Live DSP Input

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Rocket Broadcaster Pro {{Cite web|url=https://www.rocketbroadcaster.com|access-date=24 January 2019|title=Rocket Broadcaster - The Streaming Audio Encoder}}{{cite news |title=Gaming Enthusiast |url=https://steamcommunity.com/id/moneylead/ |access-date=15 October 2023 |publisher=Stream Community}}

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Broadcast Using This Tool {{Cite web|url=https://danielnoethen.de/butt|access-date=20 April 2021|title=B.U.T.T - Broadcast Using This Tool}}

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iziCast {{Cite web|url=https://izicast.de|access-date=24 August 2021|title=iziCast - Icecast and Shoutcast client for iOS}}

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See also

{{Portal|Free and open-source software}}

References

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External links

  • {{Official website|https://icecast.org/}}
  • article in Streaming Media magazine: [https://www.streamingmedia.com/Articles/ReadArticle.aspx?ArticleID=63501 The Birth of Icecast]

{{Xiph.org}}

Category:Free audio software

Category:Internet radio software

Category:Xiph.Org projects

Category:Streaming software

Category:1999 software