

It also creates an index file that contains references of the fragmented files, saved as. Segmenter: divides the stream into fragments of equal length.This is encapsulated by MPEG-2 Transport Stream or MPEG-4_Part_14 to carry it. Encoder: codify video files in H.264 format and audio in AAC, MP3, AC-3 or EC-3.In the process of intake, the video is encoded and segmented to generate video fragments and index file. Then it is prepared for distribution by segmenting it into different files. Server Codify and encapsulate the input video flow in a proper format for the delivery. HTTP Live Streaming uses a conventional web server, that implements the support for HTTP Live Streaming (HLS), to distribute audiovisual content and requires specific software, such as OBS to fit into proper format ( codec) for transmission in real time over a network. In August 2017, RFC8216 was published to describe version 7 of the protocol. As of December 2015, the authors of that document have requested the RFC Independent Stream Editor (ISE) to publish the document as an informational (non-standard) RFC outside of the IETF consensus process. Later versions of the protocol also provide for trick-mode fast-forward and rewind and for integration of subtitles.Īpple has documented HTTP Live Streaming as an Internet Draft (Individual Submission), the first stage in the process of publishing it as a Request for Comments (RFC). The standard also includes a standard encryption mechanism and secure-key distribution using HTTPS, which together provide a simple DRM system. This also allows content to be offered from conventional HTTP servers and delivered over widely available HTTP-based content delivery networks. īased on standard HTTP transactions, HTTP Live Streaming can traverse any firewall or proxy server that lets through standard HTTP traffic, unlike UDP-based protocols such as RTP. A list of available streams, encoded at different bit rates, is sent to the client using an extended M3U playlist. HLS resembles MPEG-DASH in that it works by breaking the overall stream into a sequence of small HTTP-based file downloads, each downloading one short chunk of an overall potentially unbounded transport stream. As of 2019, an annual video industry survey has consistently found it to be the most popular streaming format.


Support for the protocol is widespread in media players, web browsers, mobile devices, and streaming media servers. HTTP Live Streaming (also known as HLS) is an HTTP-based adaptive bitrate streaming communications protocol developed by Apple Inc.
