Channels
What is a channel?
It is the one bit of PealCast vocabulary worth two minutes, because every plan is sized in channels — and most churches need fewer than they expect.
A channel is one recurring program you stream — like your Sunday service.
You set it up once: point your encoder at it, and from then on you just go live. Each week’s service is simply another broadcast on that same channel.
What each channel has of its own
This is what makes a second channel worth having: the two programs stay genuinely separate, for your team and for your people.
Its own connection
One RTMP or SRT address and stream key that you set up once. Every week you just go live — nothing to reconfigure.
Its own watch page
A clean page your people go to for that program, with nothing else competing for their attention.
Its own people and notifications
Someone can follow your Sunday service without being texted every time the youth service goes live. They choose what they hear about.
Its own text keyword
A word people text to join that program’s list — so a bulletin or a slide can invite the right people to the right thing.
Its own recordings
Every service is recorded and kept for your plan’s window, filed under that program rather than in one undifferentiated pile.
Its own weekly report
A separate Shepherd’s Report, so the person who leads that ministry sees who is new and who has drifted in their congregation.
How many does your church need?
Most churches need one. Here is the honest test.
You want another when…
- A second congregation that meets separately — a Spanish-language service, a deaf congregation, a young-adults gathering.
- A different program with a different audience — a midweek Bible study, a youth service, a women’s ministry.
- A separate campus that streams its own service rather than carrying yours.
You don’t need another for…
- The same service at 9am and 11am — that is one program, streamed twice. Same channel.
- A special event, a funeral, or a Christmas Eve service — go live on the channel that fits, or use an existing one.
- Reaching people by text AND email AND push — those are notification channels, not PealCast channels. Every plan does all of them, always.
- Wanting each week’s service saved separately — every broadcast is already recorded on its own.
Every plan includes at least one channel, and larger plans include more — see how many each plan includes. There is never a setup fee to upgrade.
Not to be confused with…
You will see the word “channel” used two ways, including by us. A PealCast channel is a program you stream. A notification channel is a way of reaching someone — email, or a text and a Church Center push through Planning Center.
The second kind is never limited. Every plan reaches everyone on your list, every way, every time. You are only ever billed for the people who actually watch — here is how that is counted.
Channel questions
Start with one. Add more when you need them.
Your first 30 days include a channel — set it up once and go live this Sunday.
30 days free · no card · cancel anytime.