Broadcast & Streaming Terms

Broadcast & Streaming Terms explains the core concepts, formats, and technologies used to deliver audio and video over radio, television, and digital platforms. It’s made for producers, streamers, engineers, and content teams who manage live broadcasts or on-demand playback.

The glossary covers terms like broadcast license, encoder, bitrate, RTMP, latency, packet loss, and adaptive streaming. Each entry explains what the term means, how it works in distribution workflows, and why it matters for audience reach and playback quality. If you’re setting up a stream or managing media delivery, this guide gives you clear, practical definitions without vague tech-speak or filler.

Content Identification & Enforcement

Audible Magic – Middleware that OTT platforms integrate to block unlicensed music before streams go live.

Content ID – A pre-air vetting layer OTT services now license to block un-cleared tracks.

Flagged Content – OTT dashboards tag these assets so QC teams can pull or fix them before air.

Streaming Infringement Claim – Live-platforms may mute or remove VOD when music triggers detection.

Infringing Content – Streamers risk channel strikes if music cues aren’t properly cleared.

Legal & Regulatory Compliance

Broadcast License – A regulatory requirement tied to spectrum allocation and content rules.

DMCA – Influences music-use policies for simulcast and VOD archives.

Ephemeral Recording – Station automation cuts these short-lived files once the program airs.

Licensing & Music Rights

Blanket License – The compliance document radio stations file so every rotation is covered without track-by-track clearance.

Group License – Cable conglomerates use these to clear music across dozens of sister stations.

Operations & Quality Control

Broadcast – The one-to-many distribution of audio-visual content over terrestrial, satellite, or internet channels.

Broadcasting – The act of delivering a signal simultaneously to a dispersed audience, distinct from narrowcast OTT catalogs.

Buffering – The pre-load pause that smooths playback when network throughput dips below target bitrate.

Dead Air – Stations risk fines if automated silence sensors detect lengthy gaps.

Video Filter – Real-time LUT or scaler that meets platform loudness and color specs.

Platforms & Service Providers

Broadcaster – Any entity that schedules and transmits programs to the public, whether FM, DAB, cable, or IPTV.

Interactive Media – Two-way content such as live streams with viewer polls, demanding dynamic rights clearance.

Service Provider – ISPs and platforms that transmit or host user content under safe-harbor rules.

Standards & Delivery Technology

AVC – Broadcasters use H.264 profiles to balance bandwidth and picture quality on live streams.

HDMI – Master-control rooms convert SDI to HDMI for consumer monitors in on-air QC chains.

High-Definition – Stations pay extra carriage fees when upgrading channels from SD to HD simulcast.

HDR – OTT services tone-map HDR masters to SDR devices in real time.

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