Centova v.3

CENTOVA CAST v.3.X FOR ALL OUR RADIO HOSTING OFFERS

Centova Cast v3 is the culmination of many years of development. So much has changed that it's impractical to list every update here, but read on to learn more about the most significant changes in this release.

This new release brings a brand new, glossy user interface with plenty of animations and effects, which we hope will be easier on the eyes and more intuitive for newer users.


Easy Stream Configuration

Whether you're a ShoutCast newbie or a seasoned streaming professional, Centova Cast makes it easy to configure your stream.
admin editor
Common options are included in the first few tabs, while advanced options are tucked away in additional tabs.


General Rotation Playlists

General rotation playlists handle the bulk of the media played on your stream.
 playlist rotation
By creating multiple general rotation playlists with different "weights", you can ensure that popular tracks (such as new releases) are always played more often than your less popular tracks.


Interval Playlists

Interval playlists play on a recurring basis, either every few minutes, or after every few songs.
interval playlist
Interval playlists are ideal for jingles, station identification, commercial advertisements, promotions, or any other media that you'd like Centova Cast to automatically play frequently and repeatedly.


Scheduled Playlists

Scheduled playlists play on a specific date, at a specific time, and can be configured to repeat every day, week, month, or year on a recurring schedule.
scheduled playlist
Scheduled playlists are ideal for daily/weekly countdowns, pre-recorded shows, weather forecasts, or any other media that you'd like to have Centova Cast play automatically at a specific time.


Immediate Playlists

Immediate playlists play immediately when they are activated (after the current song completes). They are ideal for spur-of-the-moment playback of tracks such as requested songs or announcements.


AutoDJ Support

In addition to providing total control over your streaming server, Centova Cast also provides comprehensive autoDJ system. Never again will your clients need to rely on their own PC to broadcast their stream!

When enabled, clients may upload their media (MP3s, etc.) directly to the server via FTP, manage their media through Centova Cast's comprehensive AJAX Media Library system (described in the following slide), and schedule their media using Centova Cast's advanced playlist scheduling system (also described on an upcoming slide).

This provides a complete, all-in-one solution for setting up an Internet radio station.

SHOUTcast v2 / Liquidsoap Support

We have the support for the latest and advanced SHOUTcast streaming technology.
The new transcoder Liquidsoap is fully integrated with the new AutoDj system on the newst Centova v.3.2.0 PRO control panel to provide the latest streaming experience for our users.
One of its most important features is that there is no need to buy the license key to emit in mp3 as required when using sc_Trans v2.
It is more stable and has a number of facilities in addition to sc_Trans 2.
For this, Liquidsoap was integrated on Icecast v.2 servers too.
With Liquidsoap, on both servers, Icecast v.2 and SHOUTcast v2, can be used mp3, AAC + and OGG streaming.


DJ Account Support

By popular request, Centova Cast now allows clients to create accounts for, and delegate specific permissions to, the DJs performing on their stations. Clients can grant access to as much or as little of their Centova Cast account as they desire.
This system works with both the older SHOUTcast DNAS and the new v2 SHOUTcast - you can manage all your dj's and have complete control over their actions on your server.
No need to install special scripts, no configuration required, have all your dj's set up and scheduled in no time!

The new DJ Manager allows you to create a unique username and password for each of your dj's. There are 2 different ways your dj's can use their dj account,

1. The dj will use their login details to connect to your server in their live source software (ie. Sam Broadcaster, WinAmp Broadcaster, Virtual DJ, Nicecast, etc.). This is, by far the most popular feature with Centova v3, even though the server is SHOUTcast v2, dj's are able to connect using either SHOUTcast v1 or SHOUTcast v2 method, this comes in handy for dj's that do not yet have SHOUTcast v2 compatable software.

2. The dj can also use the same username and password you create for them to login to your Centova v3 control panel. You choose what the dj can do and when they can do it!

dj accounts


3. Seamless & Automatic Switching! With Centova v3 your DJ's are able to easily connect to the server and begin their broadcast with a single click!
Centova v3 will detect when a live source has connected and automatically switch from auto dj to live broadcast SEAMLESSLY! The transication is also seamless for the listener, if timed right by the DJ, they will never even realize the stream went from auto dj to live dj!
When the dj is finished with his/her broadcast, they need only disconnect, Centova v3 will go back to auto dj and wait for the next DJ to come online. All that is required on the DJ's end is live source software such as the free Win Amp Broadcaster, the popular Sam Broadcaster, plus many more.


Mountpoint / Multiple Bitrate Support

Clients using SHOUTcast v2 or IceCast can now create multiple independent mount points through the Centova Cast web interface.
This allows clients to rebroadcast their stream in multiple bit rates, or even broadcast multiple independent streams through a single SHOUTcast/IceCast server.

ATTENTION! The summ of the different bit rate mountpoints can't exceed the total amount of your maximum bitrate of your purchased server.


mountpoints


Attention !

SHOUTcast DNAS v.2 server use now the LiquidSoap transcoder that allows broadcasting in mp3, AAC+ and OGG format free of charge!! With this new transcoder SHOUTcast v.2 don't requires any more the MP3 Broadcasting License Key!!



AJAX Media Library

Centova Cast's AJAX media library brings a familiar, desktop-style media management interface to the web.
media library
Media can be searched or browsed by artist, album, title, or genre. Tracks can be added to a playlist simply by dragging and dropping them on the desired playlist. This drag-and-drop functionality can be used to instantly schedule the selected tracks to play at a given time, or on a repeating schedule.


Playlist Scheduling Features

Centova Cast supports multiple playlists for each stream. Each playlist can be configured individually to control precisely how and when it will be played -- at a specific time, on a repeating schedule, or on a rotation schedule with support for ranking by popularity (known as "weighting").

Four types of playlists are available, as described on the next four slides. Through a combination of the playlist types offered by Centova Cast, you can achieve total control over your media scheduling, and completely eliminate the need for expensive third-party source software to schedule your tracks.


Stream Start Pages

Centova Cast provides each stream with its own AJAX-driven, interactive and informative start page. radio start pages
Features include: Stream status and current song, On-demand content downloads, Recent tracks list, Song request form, Station tune-in links, Map of listener locations.

Most of these are also available as a standalone, AJAX-driven JavaScript widgets which the stream owner can use on his own web site.


Statistics & Reports

Centova Cast provides the most comprehensive streaming radio statistics system commercially available today. It provides information about listener trends and demographics, data transfer, track performances and popularity, user agents, and much, much more.

These items are discussed in detail on the following slides:
1. Listeners 2. Recent Activity
General Rotation
Scheduled Playlist
3. Listeners Country 4. Top Agents
Immediate Playlist
Interval Playlist

Recent Activity

The recent activity report provides a high-level overview of your stream statistics, including details of listener trends, average session times, total listening hours, data transfer, track playback, and more.
statistics
Listener activity for the past 48 hours is also plotted for easy reference.


Listener Overview

The listener overview provides information about listeners usage of your station.
information about listeners
Average session length is charted and graphed, and top listeners are ranked according to listener minutes and number of sessions. Listener countries are automatically determined, and the software used by the listener to tune into the stream is noted and identified as a media player or stream ripper to assist in abuse detection.


Listener Countries

The country overview provides information about the countries from which the majority of your listeners are tuning in.
countries
Top listener countries are charted and graphed according to listener minutes and number of sessions.


User Agents

The user agents report provides an overview of the software programs your listeners are using to tune in to your stream.
agents
Top user agents are charted and graphed according to listener minutes and number of sessions. Each user agent is also classified as a legitimate media player (such as WinAmp, iTunes, etc.), or a stream ripper (a program used to steal music from your stream) to assist in abuse detection.


Track Statistics

The tracks report provides information about the frequency and popularity of the tracks played on your stream.
tracks
Track popularity is determined based on the number of tune-ins/tune-outs during a particular song over the past 30 days, and this is used to compile a "least popular" and "most popular" tracks list. This provides an excellent indicator of your listeners' tastes for particular songs.


Historical Statistics

Centova Cast provides detailed daily and monthly data transfer and listener statistics, complete with graphs, allowing both the client and the administrator to track listener trends and resource usage.
historical stats
Individual stream statistics are provided to each client, and a master server-wide statistics page is provided in the server administration panel.


Music Licensing/Royalty Reports

Centova Cast provides monthly, downloadable spreadsheets containing the complete list of songs you've played on your stream in the past month, including detailed information about the date, time, and audience of each performance.
playlist reports
A performance summary spreadsheet is also available (not shown) which provides aggregate reports on the playback frequency, number of performances, and monthly TLH for each song.

These reports can greatly simplify the royalty reporting process required by many music licensing agencies.


Live Statistics

Centova Cast's live listener statistics provide a realtime look at who is listening to your stream right now, including listener countries and user agent information.
live statistics