stream

[unpakwon]

What does "stream" mean in the following?

This version shows only the elements and sources Hastings mentioned in his interview. Certainly there were others, so we leave space for them in the matrix. And of course Netflix continued to change; for example, it streams videos now too, which again Hastings did not invent but took as a precedent from elsewhere.

Thank you.

 

[Rover_KE]

It seems to be the modern equivalent of 'broadcasts'.

'...it streams videos' means '...it makes videos available for viewing'.

I stand to be corrected.

Rover

 

[emsr2d2]

If you watch TV shows, videos or listen to radio programming by "streaming" them, you watch/listen to them over the internet as they travel from the server to your computer. You don't download the data and it doesn't remain on your computer after you've watched/listened to it.
For example, when you go to YouTube and find a video you want to watch, you have the choice of downloading it to watch later, or you just press the large Play button to watch it instantly. The latter means you are streaming it.
Netflix now works the same way. You don't have to pay for a film, download it and watch it later. You can pay and hit play and watch in instantly.