Editing Data stream (section)

{{Short description|Digitally encoded information}}
{{Prose|date=January 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2019}}
{{about|the more general meaning of the term "data stream"|the UK-specific DSL technology|Datastream}}
{{distinguish|Stream (computing)|Bitstream}}

In [[connection-oriented communication]], a '''data stream''' is the [[transmission (telecommunications)|transmission]] of a sequence of [[digital signal|digitally encoded signals]] to convey [[information]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.its.bldrdoc.gov/fs-1037/dir-010/_1451.htm |title=Federal Standard 1037C ''data stream'' |access-date=April 4, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070413122107/http://www.its.bldrdoc.gov/fs-1037/dir-010/_1451.htm |archive-date=April 13, 2007 |url-status=live }}</ref> Typically, the transmitted symbols are grouped into a series of [[Network packet|packet]]s.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.techopedia.com/definition/6757/data-stream|title=Data Stream|website=techopedia.com|access-date=April 24, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190424083723/https://www.techopedia.com/definition/6757/data-stream|archive-date=April 24, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>

Data streaming has become ubiquitous. Anything transmitted over the [[Internet]] is transmitted as a data stream. Using a [[mobile phone]] to have a conversation transmits the sound as a data stream.