Streaming media

Streaming media is media that is consumed (read, heard, viewed) while it is being delivered. Although it is generally used in the context of certain content types ("streaming audio", "streaming video", etc), streaming is more a property of the delivery systems employed to distribute that content. The distinction is usually applied to media that are distributed over computer networks; most other delivery systems are either inherently streaming (radio, television) or inherently non-streaming (books, video cassettes, audio CDs).

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The word "stream" is also used as a verb, meaning to deliver streaming media.

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The remainder of this article discusses technology for streaming media over computer networks.

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