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 M¢50  Funded By Mahalo ? |  September 07, 2009 09:44 PM

How can I host my own music radio show on my website?

Is there a way I can host a music show on my website? I think it would be fun to provide music to visitors.

Are there copyright laws against this?
Are there services that make this easy?
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Best Answer  Chosen by Asker

 
September 07, 2009 11:52 PM
Yes it's possible. There's lots of software out there for both streaming live and/or streaming from prerecord digitally encoded programming that loops, etc.

Just pic your favorite search engine, type in "how to stream online radio", weed out the ads from other online radio stations asking you to listen to them, and pick some software (either open source or commercialy supported) that suits your hardware.

The main thing to know is this: Bandwidth. Minimum 128kbps upload speed from the server.

And yes... copyright is an issue. Be prepared to pay royaltees if they catch you.

The way royaltees work is... you're not required to voluntarily report and pay royaltees, but if they catch you, you've got (in most jurisdictons) three business days to pony up, during which time you'll be off the air. What some people do is put the royaltees in a savings account to collect interest until they get caught.

You might think that you'll be too small to be noticed, but you'll also probably be suprised to know just how thoroughly the powers that be watch anything to do with public broadcast, even if it's over a wire, and one of their favorite methods to shut down someone with a bad attitude is to sit there for awhile, counting up (and listening to, humming along to your excellent taste in music) all the songs you play, letting it accumulate, and when the total comes to a hefty amout, they'll walk in, give you an order to pay that amount as royaltee or you're shut down and fined, and if you don't have that royaltee ready to go, you're toast.

The point is... you'll probably find that technically it's easier to do than you thought, and you'll probably find that it's more serious than you thought when it comes to keeping things legit, but if you wanne be legit, I expect you'll *also* find that royaltees are *cheeper* than you though... a few pennies per play - keep a piggy bank on your desk and toss in a few cents (whatever it is in your jurisdiction) every time you play a tune, and have a royaltee tip-jar for visitors.

Other costs like a reliable upload link and your electric bill are going to run you more, and you know what your broadband provider will do if you don't pay your bill, so it's not like the musicians are being tyrants to ask you to pay their bill too...
Asker's Rating:
• Thanks, it's not worth it to do this!


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Helpful: eatthatpopcorn

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