Talking about streaming means talking about data, that is, a form of digital distribution, as opposed to data download.
What is streaming?
Streaming is the technology that allows for data transmission over the internet, mainly audio and video, without the need to download the content. The file, which can be a video or a song, is accessed by the user online. The content holder transmits the music or film over the internet and this material does not take up space on the computer or cell phone. Some platforms offer digital content download, for subscribers only.
What are the benefits of streaming?
One of the main benefits of streaming is convenience: through an account (which can be free or charged, depending on the platform), we have access to a large amount of movies, series, music and other content, which would be more difficult to access legally individually, given the costs of each separate physical element, such as CDs, DVDs, Books, etc. For the same reason, it is an anti-piracy tool, which features ease of use and affordable prices, against illegal online distribution.
What precautions should be taken regarding streaming?
Basically, the user must be careful with data consumption on smartphones and tablets when watching streaming content, especially when using mobile networks. Depending on each situation, streaming videos and music often consume many GBs. And, if users are not careful, they can exceed the operator’s limit. Some services, such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, AppleTV, HBO and Spotify, allow you to download some content to watch/listen to offline, which protects the defined data limit of each operator.
How is AI playing a greater role in streaming?
To create a customized playlist, it is first necessary to classify music tracks that have been listened to by genre.
With AI, this is carried out through Natural Language Processing (NLP), to cross-reference information that results from a set of words, which describes the user’s musical tastes, and from that data AI starts to combine individual experiences to find out which may appeal to the user.
But that’s not all! AI works on deeper processes, on simpler aspects of streaming music, such as adjusting sound volumes and eliminating noise.
But, for listeners not to be surprised by the gap between different volumes, machine learning technology helps create a smooth transition between songs.
Spotify’s head of machine learning Tony Jebara stated that “AI helps with some more subtle tasks, such as adding surprises to the custom playlist”.
“Recommending the same song time and time again– even if a user has voluntarily listened to it for weeks – can be annoying.” said Jebara.
Still, music streaming services remain dependent on human curators. Jebara said Spotify’s human music editors identify “things we don’t see in the data,” such as new music genres and trends.
Why is it important?
AI works like an automated DJ, deciding which songs listeners will enjoy.
This work developed by AI in music eases and makes more accurate the process followed by people working as music editors. However, we know AI is uncapable of dealing with some “more human” details, such as the reasons why a person likes a specific song (feeling, moment, story).
“At some point in the future, AI might be able to catch up with these things.” “Ultimately, neural networks can get there for sure, but they need more information than a catalog of 80 million songs.” said Sonos Radio’s general manager, Ryan Taylor.
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