I'm curious how IPTV works. Do they have a bunch of satellite subscribers that re-broadcast? I assume there would need to be multiple sources so is there software that aggregates them and streams to end users based on channel availablity and load? I'm guessing it's a fairly low cost biz but would like to understand the infrastructure and software. Any GitHub links with code that will help me understand?
Look into Xtream-Codes. It's the software pretty much every IPTV service uses and handles adding streams, setting up service bundles, which user has access to which bundles, etc. I have no idea how much the software costs but I imagine it's in the hundreds if not thousands of $.
Its pretty much all Xtream-Codes these days, its not cheap but there are pirated versions available for free if you know where to look. I know the UK Sky channels are being sourced by Now TV boxes mainly.
Some streams come off satellite, some are restreamed off Xfinity or DirecTV. I'm sure some are coming off mobile/android devices as they have access to numerous streams. I know a majority of the Canadian channels are coming off a Shaw direct or bell satellite feed as you see the screensaver or recording reminder pop up. The American channels vary I've seen satellite, and Xfinity/DirecTV online restreamed. There are many ways to do it. I use a program on my PC to just restream off the fibetv app.
anybody knows where do they get the stream links from?
In a nutshell, hypothetically speaking, if you ran an IPTV server, you could hunt down individual streams yourself or buy/rent groups or categories of streams and then run them through your streaming admin panel. Aside from the above content costs and server bandwidth, assuming you aren't up 24/7 yourself, you would need to pay admins to keep things running smoothly.