Table Of Content
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live365.com
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What is Live365?
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Overcoming the dark patch
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Well-timed acquisition
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History
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Why should you stream on Live365?
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Music Royalty Coverage
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Uncompromised Sound Quality
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Customizable Players and Station
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Distribution and Statistics
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Design
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Header
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Hero Section
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Body
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Footer
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Inner Pages
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Content
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Desktop/Mobile experience
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Plans & Pricing
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Suggestions I have for Live365
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Conclusion
live365.com
One of the oldest and most influential broadcasting networks is Live365. It allows creators to start their own online stations and also has its own radio streaming service which allows users to listen to thousands of curated stations built by other users from around the globe.
Live365 is different because it is a network that has been created and managed by listeners like you and me. From radio enthusiasts to hobbyists, professionals, and anyone else who wants to be a part of it, you?ll find everyone on this network.
What is Live365?
Live365 is a well-known streaming service with FM and AM stations that are based on its own distribution network. Over the years, it has covered artists such as Johnny Cash, Pat Metheny, David Byrne, Frank Zappa, and Jethro Tull. In the 20 years of its existence, it has broken records and achieved crucial milestones one after the other. It is amongst the few longest running internet radio websites which cater to both listeners and broadcasters.
Overcoming the dark patch
Live365, after its 10-year contract ended in 2016, found itself in trouble. In fact, not just Live365 but all the small independent radio service providers were in a tight spot after the royalty law was changed in December 2015. The pending expiration of the royalty rate for small broadcasters led investors to hold up their hands. Thus, Live365 ceased its operation and vacated its office because it didn't have any fuel left. With just a few employees remaining, Live365 operated from home for over a year until it made a comeback.
Well-timed acquisition
In July 2016, Jon Stephenson - the owner of EmpireStreaming acquired Live365. In 2017, an article appeared on the EmpireStreaming account suggesting that Live365 is back and sign-ups were opened allowing the former broadcasters to restart their stations.
History
Live365 was founded by a team of engineers at Nanocosm, the parent company of Live365. In the early years, Live365 used Shoutcast technology to build this company, with Andy Volk as the lead architect. Later, Brian Lomeland (who was then technical director at Nanocosm) modified the network and that led to its establishment.
Why should you stream on Live365?
To get started broadcasting your own online radio station, you can try out a 7-day free trial. There are different broadcasting packages available which allow you to customize your station. A well-structured plan will allow you to start the radio station for free and make money from the number of users who visit it.
Music Royalty Coverage
Most of the independent radio streaming service providers have a difficult time overcoming the royalty issue. As a result, they must cease production and put an end to their journey or pay royalties to keep their services going. When you work with Live365, you no longer have to worry about royalty because it is covered by Live365. All you have to do is to be creative and find new ways to attract listeners.
Uncompromised Sound Quality
There are many streaming services that only offer lower bit rates such as 32 or 64kbps. However, by starting your channel at 128kbps, you can get better quality than most of the streaming services out there. This means you can start broadcasting in a more professional manner, regardless of your starting point.
Customizable Players and Station
A thematic option can make your station stand out from the rest. With Live365, you can customize your player and make it look different from the other channels. Most broadcasters look for these types of options, as they want their channel to be distinct. Besides the customizable player, you also have access to mobile and desktop apps which makes it easier for you to reach out to your audience in a more personal way.
Distribution and Statistics
With Live365, distribution is well-handled and you can get your station on multiple platforms including iTunes Radio for better exposure. You control the analytics so that you can track detailed statistics about each and every aspect of your station. Thanks to a user-intuitive dashboard, you can manage anything - from the content library and storage to a number of visitors and songs played, you are in control of everything.
Design
I have to give credit where credit is due; the design on Live365 really stands out. The white and dark blue gradient with orange accents looks great and makes the site look premium. However, I'm not saying that it's the best radio streaming website out there, but it is definitely a strong competitor.
Header
Live365 has a logo on the left with a transparent search bar at the center. On the right, it has three options: Start Your Station, User Icon (Sign up and Login Panel) and an ellipsis icon which has a drop-down menu with five options: ?Start Your Station?, ?Listen to Radio?, ?Broadcaster Resources?, ?Support? and ?Blog?.
Hero Section
The layout is simple, transparent and white with a silhouette of the website?s logo in the top right corner.
Live365?s hero section takes up most of the page and goes all the way to the ?Discover More? button. The main text on this section is ?The World?s Audio? with genres and album arts broken down into rectangular and square tiles. There are four genre options- Christmas, Jazz, Gospel, and Classical along with two dozen radio station thumbnails. The layout is simple, transparent, and white with a silhouette of Live365's logo in the top right corner.
Body
The light gradient contrasts starkly with the dark blue and purple hues of the body section on the homepage. The background is black, and the icons are light in color, which gives it a strange appearance. There are three sections on this page - Audience, Licensing and Monetization. If you want to learn more, you can click on any of these features, or you can scroll down to find the app plug for Android and iOS platforms.
Footer
I really appreciate how the footer follows a simple design that corresponds with the body section, and it has two rows of options on the left. The first row features options for Podcast Hosting, Christmas Music, Where to Listen, Broadcaster Resources, and About Us. The second row has Blog, Careers, Support options. On the right you can find social media icons-Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn-if you'd like to share your platform with friends and family.
Inner Pages
The inner pages of the media player follow the same blur and gradient layout, but what stands apart is the media player. With the name of the station on the top, genres in the middle and a sleek player underneath, I like the aesthetics of this section. The grey transparent box also features the track name, artist name, and album art. If you scroll down, you?ll find recently played tracks and detail about the station on the right side.
Content
When you search for Live365 on Google, you can easily see what the platform is about. You'll find metadata about Listen, Start Your Station, Pricing, About Us, and Live365 Broadcaster on the first page of results.
After reading the various content descriptions, I found that Live365 has something to offer everyone. There are genres for everyone, ranging from Rock to Jazz to Electronic and Gospel. There are hundreds of shows and stations to choose from, all with different content and styles. I was also impressed by the number of options for finding music. There are both individual tracks and complete albums available, as well as playlists of songs curated by others. This platform is definitely one you should explore if you're looking for a plentiful supply of great music!
Desktop/Mobile experience
However, I found that the platform was too limiting for my needs.
I enjoyed streaming on Live365. As mentioned before, I loved the small music player on the inner page. The sleek design and overall functionality ensured that I kept returning to the website for more streaming experience. As for hosting my own broadcasting station, I tried a $59/month package for 6 months and found that it was too limiting for my needs.
Plans & Pricing
There are four plans available - Free, Broadcast 1, Broadcast 2, and Broadcast 3. The first plan costs $59/month whereas the 2 and 3 plan costs $99/month and $199/month respectively. The major difference between the three premium plans is the amount of storage provided (25GB for the $59/month plan versus 100GB for the $199/month plan) as well as licenses available (1500 for the $59/month plan versus 7,000 for the $199/month plan).
Suggestions I have for Live365
I did not find any significant holes in the overall service offered by Live365. I would like the developers to work on improving the streaming quality and fixing the inner page layout on the desktop. Overall, I understand that they have done it keeping in mind the mobile responsiveness, but on desktop, it looks quite ridiculous.
Conclusion
The selection of content is impressive, and the overall experience is great.
Whether youâre a listener or broadcaster, Live365 is an indispensable platform. The well-designed interface and a wide range of plans make it easy to start your own journey as a broadcaster. For listeners, if youâre interested in hearing songs and podcasts from independent artists, this has to be one of the finest platforms. The selection of content is impressive, and the overall experience is great.
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