How Does Podcast Distribution Work?

As we become more technologically savvy, podcasts have been part of that growing process. They have quickly become one of the more popular ways of distributing audio and video files. Because of the episodic nature of podcasts, subscribers need a way to regularly receive each installment, without having to seek out each time an episode is released. Typically the subscriber will use a podcast client, which allows them to subscribe to a feed; this is the basic idea of podcast distribution. There is a wide array of podcast clients, or podcatchers, available for every platform. The most popular though, is Apple’s iTunes, which rose to prominence after adding the podcatching feature in 2004.

Podcast clients work by searching the internet for a specific file, called an RSS feed. RSS officially stands for “RDF Site Summary”, but is widely used as an abbreviation for “Really Simple Syndication.” The RSS feed is a file that contains the information a podcast client needs in order to receive the syndicated content a user wishes to subscribe to. RSS data feeds were originally used to distribute posts to blog subscribers. However, RSS has become recognized for its ease in distributing all different types of information, audio or video files, along with podcasts.

Because of podcast distribution, starting your own podcast requires very little, a means to record the media and a server to host the files. This low start-up cast has allowed many people to distribute their work, whereas in the past, it would have required a national radio or television network. As a subscriber, you are also greatly benefited from this technology. Now you have the ability to receive free content, with a large array of choices, without the hassle of seeking it out week after week.

By: B. Freer

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