Live365

Last updated

LIVE365
Company type Private
Industry Internet Radio
Founded1999;27 years ago (1999)
Headquarters
Pittsburgh, PA
Area served
Global
Key people
Jon Stephenson (CEO)
Website live365.com

LIVE365 is an Internet radio platform owned by SoundStack Inc., a Pittsburgh-based audio technology company. As the world's longest-operating internet radio platform, Live365 provides individuals, schools, and media organizations with tools to create, license, distribute, and monetize online radio stations.

Contents

Founded in 1999 in Foster City, California, Live365 pioneered bundled music licensing for webcasters and developed early technologies for server-side ad insertion, scalable streaming infrastructure, and connected-device playback. The company currently operates under SoundStack Inc., which has been recognized on the Inc. 5000 Fastest-Growing Companies list. [1]

History

Heritage and Longevity (1999–2005)

Founding and Early Pivot

Live365 originated as a project within Nanocosm Inc., a technology startup founded by Alex Sanford and Steve Follmer. Initially focused on "NanoHome," a 3D virtual home website, the company pivoted after employee Andy Volk developed a community radio concept using Shoutcast technology. Developed alongside CTO Peter Rothman, the service launched publicly in July 1999. The platform’s name was derived from its initial offering: free hosting for up to 365 simultaneous listeners and 365 megabytes of storage per station.

Business Model Evolution

Following the dot-com collapse and rising music royalty costs, Live365 transitioned from a free service to a paid broadcasting model in September 2001. By bundling music licensing into its subscription tiers, the company became an early adopter of the "one-contract" licensing model. This allowed the platform to remain financially viable during a period when many contemporary streaming services ceased operations. In March 2003, the company further diversified its revenue by launching "VIP," a commercial-free listener membership.

At launch, broadcasting and listening on Live365 was free of charge. Stations had a maximum listener cap of 365 simultaneous listeners and 365 megabytes of storage for music and audio. In September 2001, Live365 began charging for use of its broadcasting services to remain financially viable in the wake of rising music royalty costs. More expensive plans allowed stations to have more simultaneous listeners and a greater amount of music file storage space. Members who joined before September 2001 could continue broadcasting with their original package for free. This model would later be replaced with one in which all members pay, but those who joined before September 2001 received a discount. In March 2003, Live365 launched their commercial-free membership called VIP.

Early Partnerships and Technical Innovation

During its first decade, Live365 established several partnerships that expanded internet radio into consumer hardware and artist-led curation:

  • Nothing Records (1999): A partnership with Trent Reznor’s Nothing Records resulted in "Nothing Radio," one of the first artist-curated streaming networks to use licensed catalog content.
  • Kerbango (2000): Live365 integrated its station directory into the Kerbango Internet Radio (a division of 3Com), one of the first stand-alone hardware devices designed for streaming audio.
  • TiVo (2005): A co-marketing agreement enabled broadband-connected TiVo DVRs to stream Live365 stations directly through the device interface. This represented an early example of over-the-top (OTT) audio streaming on consumer hardware.

Industry Impact

At the 2001 Consumer Electronics Show, Live365 demonstrated in-car streaming, preceding the widespread adoption of mobile streaming applications by several years. The platform also developed proprietary advertising technology; a 2001 StreamingMedia feature highlighted its Ad Insertion Server, one of the first server-based systems for dynamic, in-stream audio advertising. Alongside pioneers such as Shoutcast, Spinner.com and Broadcast.com, Live365 is recognized for contributing to the foundational infrastructure of web-based broadcasting.

Services and features

Listening

Live365 offers a variety of music and talk from numerous countries and genres. Users may listen to thousands of stations on the Live365 radio network for free, with in-stream audio ads covering a portion of the music royalty and streaming costs. Live365 also offers personalized recommendations. Live365 is available for listening on the web and across many mobile and home streaming devices.

Live365 offers a paid listener subscription service called VIP, which features commercial-free listening. [2]

Broadcasting platform

Live365 is a digital broadcasting platform that was initially operational from 1999 to January 31, 2016, before being revived in 2018. The platform provides the functionality for users to either host live broadcasts or upload and create playlists of music and talk content for streaming purposes. Live365 pays music royalties to labels, artists, songwriters, and publishers through organizations including ASCAP, BMI, SESAC, and SoundExchange.

In October 2011, Live365 implemented the Pro Points rewards program. This enabled Pro broadcasters to incorporate Live365 audio advertisements into their content, with financial rewards granted upon reaching specified ad milestones.

In 2013, Live365 further expanded its service offerings with the release of the Studio365 for Mobile application. This software tool allows Live365 broadcasters to manage their radio station remotely using mobile devices. [3]

Company milestones

Player365 on iPAQ Beta Build E78667 f73ecf607b4044f79b82de367fdef049~mv2.webp
Player365 on iPAQ Beta Build
IPAQ with Ricochet Modems and Live365's Player365 streaming media software E78667 a3f7c40461904504addb81671ac9fc99~mv2.webp
IPAQ with Ricochet Modems and Live365's Player365 streaming media software

References

  1. ↑ https://soundstack.com/about/
  2. ↑ "Live365 Internet Radio - Sign up". Archived from the original on June 15, 2013. Retrieved May 30, 2013.
  3. ↑ "Studio365 Mobile App". Live365. Retrieved December 23, 2015.
  4. ↑ "Net radio ruling fails to satisfy". CNN Money. CNN.com. June 21, 2002. Retrieved January 30, 2007.
  5. ↑ "Live365 Announces Launch of New Website". Broadcasting World. Broadcasting World. July 22, 2010. Retrieved July 22, 2010.
  6. ↑ "Live365 returns, one year after going silent - RAIN News". January 2, 2017.
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