Small online Radio Station

Clergy

Hello all.. question...

I am the guild master in an MMORPG and am looking to get a guild-wide radio station brewing. I don't want anything fancy... just something that will allow me to stream audio from my PC and mic to a few users at no cost. I am not looking to make this internet wide. it will only be available to those who can log into our forums. Does anyone have any tips on good software for this as well as a somewhat simple method to follow?

Thank you in advance for the help.

Animal

I've not got any experience in running Internet Radio stations, but I'm not entirely sure this is what you want / need to do.

As you've said, it's for a very few users so the capital and time required to set up a broadcast is probably not worth it.

Do you want to broadcast music? If so, is it copyrighted stuff? One of the stations I listen to has a fairly comprehensive FAQ on restrictions on broadcasting music across the internet - this includes paying royalties to artists, setting specific delays before requests are played and so on - have a look at the FAQ at http://www.dainbramage.com/webcasting.php

If, on the other hand, you just want to broadcast speech, why not use a VoIP client like Skype, or even MSN Messenger / Google Talk? If you want to repeat something and continue its broadcast over and over, you could record it and play it back - just get all your users to sign into the service and join a "group-chat" channel. However, this is obviously not an ideal solution - pretty complex and needs everyone to install specific software and make an account with a third party.

In theory, a radio station sounds like a great idea, but restrictions and royalties required to keep it above-board (even if it's only limited to a very few users) would be pretty restrictive. If you were particularly keen to start a radio station and you were able to comply with all the RIAA regulations, you would be far better opening it up to the internet rather than a closed-user-group. This way, you could fund the project via advertising (both on the website and in-broadcast) - remember that Bandwidth and royalties would run up huge bills every month.

Aiz

I am in a clan in a mmorpg and we, along with our alliance, has a channel thing for "live communication" so we can talk to each other and issue/receive verbal commands during clan activities. I just got that software myself and it seems pretty nice. it's called Ventrilo or something of that. I only know how to it up as a client, not sure about the server set up, do a search on google and see what you come across o.o;;v

jovemac

My suggestion is to better go for www.live365.com kind of internet radio stations.

The stations you’re hearing on Live365 are created by listeners just like you!

Through your Internet browser, Live365 helps you upload your favorite tracks (CDs or MP3s), arrange them in a play order, and flip the switch! Live365 then broadcasts your tracks around the globe, looping 24 hours a day. Your station listing will be placed in the Live365 Listen Directory where any of our three million+ listeners per month can tune in.

We even have free Live365 applications that make uploading and arranging your tracks even faster. Studio365 for Windows and Mac.

If you're into live broadcasting, you can use free Studio365-Live software (or your own) to send your home broadcast out "live" directly from your own computer. You can talk into the mic, play tracks on-the-fly, or relay another broadcast to the ever-growing Live365 audience.

With Live365, sharing your favorite music and starting your own station is easy, economical, legal and fun. Just pick a broadcasting package, and in a few short steps you'll be on your way.

xorcist

You should get shoutcast. You dont have to pay for it if you have the server on your computer and just use your ip address in there for people to listen. Go to http://www.freewebs.com/heylolhey/news.htm that should show you a step by step guide on how to set one up.