Multicasttechnologie

Multicasttechnologie is a network communication method that allows a single data stream to be delivered to multiple intended recipients simultaneously. This contrasts with unicast, where data is sent from one source to one specific destination, and broadcast, where data is sent from one source to all devices on a network segment. Multicast operates by creating a group of interested receivers. When a sender wishes to transmit data via multicast, it sends the data to a designated multicast group address. Network infrastructure, such as routers and switches, then intelligently forwards copies of this data only to the network segments that contain members of that specific multicast group. This efficient routing mechanism significantly reduces network traffic and bandwidth consumption compared to sending individual copies of data to each recipient using unicast. Common applications for multicast include live video streaming, online gaming, financial data distribution, and software updates. It is particularly useful in environments with a large number of receivers for the same content, such as distributing live television signals over an IP network. The Internet Group Management Protocol (IGMP) is a key protocol used by hosts to signal their membership in multicast groups to their local routers.