High bandwidth broadcast system having localized multicast access to broadcast content

An audio media distribution system for distributing audio content to Internet users accessing the Internet, the audio distribution system comprising:

• a) a satellite uplink;
• b) an audio delivery system in communication with said satellite uplink and providing at least one audio data stream to said uplink;
• c) the satellite uplink providing at least one dedicated digital communications channel of predetermined allocated bandwidth, said allocated bandwidth being sufficient to transmit said audio data stream substantially in real time;
• d) a plurality of remote Internet access gateways;
• e) a plurality of remote satellite downlink systems, each of said remote satellite downlink systems being in communication with one of said remote Internet access gateways;
• f) each said remote satellite downlink systems comprising at least a satellite receiver/demultiplexer and an Internet router, said receiver/demultiplexer and Internet router cooperatively recovering said audio stream from said satellite channel and providing access to said audio stream substantially in real time to one or more Internet users.

A method of streaming digital data comprising one or more channels of audio content to a plurality of Internet points of presence of an ISP or other entity, comprising the steps of:

• a) predetermining an amount of bandwidth required to stream one or more channels of audio content to said points of presence substantially in real time;
• b) reserving said amount of bandwidth of a digital data communications medium that is substantially separate from the Internet backbone;
• and
• c) transmitting, substantially in real time, one or more channels of streaming audio content through said digital data communications medium to said plurality of points of presence.

A method of multicasting digital data, including at least audio digital data, to user apparatus accessing an Internet connection, the method comprising the steps of:

• a) placing the digital data in an IP multicasting protocol to generate IP multicast data;
• b) streaming the IP multicast data from a transmission site to a remote Internet point of presence through one or more portions of bandwidth substantially dedicated to the streaming IP multicast data and associated information;
• and
• c) multicasting at least a portion of the IP multicast data from the remote Internet point of presence for delivery to at least one receiving Internet user's apparatus distal from the remote Internet point of presence;
• wherein the audio digital data includes a plurality of audio channels and wherein said audio channels are allocated to one or more reserved channel-sufficient portions of the one or more portions of bandwidth, whereby each audio channel is multicast to the remote Internet point of presence without interruption due to another audio channel being transmitted through said one or more portions of bandwidth.

A method of distributing multicast audio content to Internet user apparatus, the method comprising the steps of:

• a) transmitting IP protocol digital audio content to Internet user apparatus through two-way IP protocol bandwidth;
• and
• b) simultaneously streaming multicast content to Internet user apparatus through one or more one-way reserved bandwidth portions bypassing the two-way IP protocol bandwidth for reception by the Internet user apparatus in conjunction with the IP protocol content;
• wherein the multicast content includes a plurality of audio channels and said audio channels are allocated to one or more reserved channel-sufficient portions of the one or more one-way bandwidth portions, whereby each audio channel is multicast without interruption due to any other audio or video channel being transmitted through said one-way bandwidth portions.