Podcast

[1][2][3] Typically, a podcast is an episodic series of digital audio files that users can download to a personal device or stream to listen to at a time of their choosing.

Podcasts combine elaborate and artistic sound production with thematic concerns ranging from scientific research to slice-of-life journalism.

In other cases, a podcast could be a business venture supported by some combination of a paid subscription model, advertising or product delivered after sale.

Podcasting is the preparation and distribution of audio or video files using RSS feeds to the devices of subscribed users.

Hosting companies then distribute these media files to podcast directories and streaming services, such as Apple and Spotify, which users can listen to on their smartphones or digital music and multimedia players.

[10][11] The term was first used in the audioblogging community in September 2004, when Danny Gregoire introduced it in a message to the iPodder-dev mailing list,[12][13] from where it was adopted by podcaster Adam Curry.

[17] In October 2000, the concept of attaching sound and video files in RSS feeds was proposed in a draft by Tristan Louis.

[19] In August 2004, Adam Curry launched his show Daily Source Code, focused on chronicling his everyday life, delivering news, and discussions about the development of podcasting.

Curry promoted new and emerging internet audio shows in an attempt to gain traction in the development of what would come to be known as podcasting.

[22] iPodderX, released in September 2004 by August Trometer and based on earlier work by Ray Slakinski, was the first GUI application for podcasts.

[23][24] In June 2005, Apple released iTunes 4.9, which added formal support for podcasts, thus negating the need to use a separate program in order to download and transfer them to a mobile device.

Additionally, Apple issued cease and desist orders to many podcast application developers and service providers for using the term "iPod" or "Pod" in their products' names.

This shift occurred as a result of the evolution of internet capabilities along with increased consumer access to cheaper hardware and software for audio recording and editing.

[29] The form is also acclaimed for its low overhead for a creator to start and maintain their show, merely requiring a microphone, a computer or mobile device, and associated software to edit and upload the final product.

[30] Between February March 10 and 25, 2005, Shae Spencer Management, LLC of Fairport, New York filed a trademark application to register the term "podcast" for an "online pre-recorded radio program over the internet".

On September 9, 2005, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) rejected the application, citing Wikipedia's podcast entry as describing the history of the term.

[45] Podcasts can be produced at little to no cost and are usually disseminated free-of-charge, which sets this medium apart from the traditional 20th-century model of "gate-kept" media and their production tools.

Podcasts are partially patterned on previous media genres but depart from them systematically in certain computationally observable stylistic respects.

Dead End Days, a serialized dark comedy about zombies released from October 31, 2003, through 2004, is commonly believed to be the first video podcast.

Podcast episodes are widely stored and encoded in the mp3 digital audio format and then hosted on dedicated or shared webserver space.

[84][85] If the podcast involves two or more people, each person requires a microphone, and a USB audio interface is needed to mix them together.