The word broadcast is an old one with a majority of people being aware of its meaning. After all, who has not heard about British Broadcasting Service that is the largest news broadcasting service in the world? We have all grown up watching broadcast of programs on radio and later on TV. Broadcast has also become a famous word because of live streaming of matches of various sports such as cricket, tennis, football etc on television. In comparison, podcast is a relatively new word that is used for distributing files (mainly audio) through RSS feed on the net. However, the two words are confused by a lot of people and use these words interchangeably, which is incorrect. This article aims to clarify the differences between podcast and broadcast by highlighting their features.
What is Podcast?
Do not confuse podcast with iPod though you can certainly listen to podcast on your iPod. In fact, it is the fame of iPod that has made webcast being renamed as podcast. If you try to break up, you will find that podcast is made up with pod from iPod, and cast from broadcast. The distribution of an audio file like an MP3 through RSS feed on any website is what is referred to as podcast. It is possible for anyone (or members, as the case may be) to download this audio file from the website. These people can then transfer this file to any other MP3 device like iPod and listen to it whenever they so desire. It is possible to listen to a podcast at your convenience if you have a subscription of the site.
What is Broadcast?
Use of mass media for distribution of audio and video files is known as broadcast. It started way back in 1881 with telephone broadcasting when people subscribed for this form of broadcasting and listened to operas and other musical events on their telephones. Radio broadcasting started soon after with radio waves transmitted and listened through a radio receiver. Television followed suit, with recorded and even live events being broadcasted through television in all parts of the country, and now world.
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What is the difference between Podcast and Broadcast? • Either you listen to a podcast ‘live’ or when you so desire if you are a member of a website as this audio file is distributed through RSS feed. On the other hand, one can listen or watch a broadcast, and there is no downloading involved. • Podcasting takes place through the internet only while broadcast is done through various mediums like radio, television and cable television. • Most radio stations of today have started to distribute podcasts besides regular broadcasting. • You can listen to podcast at any time after it has been distributed, whereas you can listen to an MP3 file only when it is being broadcast on radio.
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