Podcasting allows your business to portably connect with society, anytime, anywhere. Like the term broadcast, podcast can refer either to the content itself or the method by which content is syndicated; the latter is also called podcasting. A new and powerful form of mobile media, podcast is a series of digital audio or video files broadcast to the web and made available to subscribers for download via web syndication and RSS feeds.
These multimedia files are released episodically and distributed over the internet, and users may either stream or download the files in MP3 format. These files are stored locally on the user's computer or other device for offline use, making it simpler for users to access episodic content. Podcasting takes its name from a combination of “iPod” and “broadcasting.” However, the use of an iPod is not required for podcasting.
The files are published to the internet, and users may subscribe to a feed and receive new files automatically by subscription. Special client software applications access a centrally-maintained web feed that lists all files currently associated with that particular series. These software applications are known as podcatchers and automatically detect and download new files in the series. Once downloaded, the podcast episodes can be played back through a computer or any portable personal device such as iPods, MP3 Players, Cell Phones and Portable Game Players.
Podcasting began in 2007 and has already become the most powerful of portable multimedia concepts.