Well, one way to avoid the potential problem Carl points out is for a station to run its own server (and get its own music license, or, in my case, play only public domain material). However, just because something out there on the Internet connects to your server doesn't mean they're a listener. There are all sorts of bots and hackers out there looking for open ports and/or vulnerabilities.
I once looked at my total listener count and it was over 20,000 (for one day!). It turned out that the IP address was that of a known spammer - they look for open ports and ways to get into your computer so that they can turn it into a spam machine. I blocked the IP, but the same spammer came back on another IP. I ended up blocking an entire range of IP's (because the spammer was well known, the IP addresses were well known too).
To determine a 'real' listener, you need to go into your logs and see who stays there for a period of time. Most of these other connection attempts are momentary.
The control panel allows the streamer (me) to see real-time the IP addresses of who's connected by geographical location. So yes Carl at least in the case of Live365 you are in slumberland.
I exchanged email with Stream Licensing today and was assured that the $59/mo plan covers how ever many streamers as necessary. If 100 people want to listen, then can. If a thousand people want to stream, they can. All at once. But if 1000 people are all listening at once and they all listen for an hour, that burns up your 4000 limit on total listener hours available for that month. His example to me was that 5-10 people could listen simultaneously if they were to stream 24/7. That would use up the 4000 alloted total listener hours within the month.
Which is what i thought. The number of people streaming is not controled or limited, it's the number of total streaming hours that is limited, to whatever size package you buy. So if you start with the smaller 4000 hour package and discover that's not enough to cover your number of streamers you'll need to upgrade.
So it really depends on how many people listen for how long. For $78/mo Stream LIcensing gives you 7000 TLH. It goes up to $263 for 25,000 TLH. If you're generating that kind of listernership you should easily be able to cover the cost with advertising income.
Don't know about you, but I don't know anyone who streams anything 24 hours a day 7 days a week. ESpecially if they're paying for data.
As for all the bots and such that connect, they only connect for a second so don't really have much effect on TLH (total listening hours).
When I listen to WREN, the streaming only oldies station out of Topeka os Shoutcast I get one 30 second ad when I connect and that's it. The rest is them. Of course they have over 25,000 listeners per day.
TIB
My reference to bots and spammers was directed towards those that run their own streaming server. You might think you're getting hundreds of listeners per day, but in reality most of those are 'other'.
I can tell you why that....
Hold, on...commercial...
Anyway, the reason why I listen to inter....
Sec, another commercial....
Ok, I listen to internet radio for one sim....
Damn, another commercial....
^^ It didn't used to be this bad. Now it is. Bye, radio.