The Birth of Internet Radio
Discover how radio moved onto the internet, from early online audio experiments and pioneering live streams to global radio available anywhere with a connection.
When distance stopped defining the audience
Traditional broadcasting is constrained by the physical reach of a transmitter and by the characteristics of the chosen frequency. Internet radio replaced that geographic boundary with a network connection. Once audio could be encoded, sent as data and played continuously, a broadcaster could reach listeners far outside its local signal area.
From experiments to everyday streaming
Early online audio was limited by slow connections, compression technology and computer hardware. As broadband access, audio codecs and media players improved, continuous streaming became practical. Existing broadcasters began simulcasting online and internet-only stations appeared without a terrestrial frequency at all.
The directory problem
Growth created a new challenge: discovery. Thousands of independent streams are useful only if listeners can find and play them. Modern radio directories collect public station metadata, organise it and deal with streams that move or fail. Nanith Radio operates in this layer, providing discovery while the station remains the publisher of its own programming.
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