RaiPlay Sound RSS

What is this?

This Fastify service generates always up to date RSS podcast feeds for programs on RaiPlay Sound. It uses their undocumented JSON endpoints instead of vendor-locking you into the tracking circus that RaiPlay Sound is.

Unlike tools that periodically rebuild static feeds, this service is reactive and regenerates feeds on demand only when a client requests them, typically when you open your podcast app.

It exposes endpoints structured like:

/:type/:name

for example:

/programmi/battiti

Note

An earlier version of the API required paths structured as /rss/programmi/battiti.xml. The structure has been simplified, but the old paths still work.

Why?

RaiPlay Sound provides:

• structured JSON APIs with full metadata
• direct downloadable audio (MP3)

…but:

• official RSS feeds were abandoned to force you to use their proprietary app
• content is locked behind their web player and tracking-heavy frontend

This service restores open access to that content through standard podcast tools, as was the case until 2020.

Where do I find the program type and name?

Check on the website:

https://www.raiplaysound.it/programmi/battiti
                            ↑ type ↑  ↑ name ↑

Works with programmi, audiolibri, playlist... (not dirette)

What do I need to make this work?

A Node.js server, the base for all greatness.

git clone https://github.com/frammenti/raiplaysoundrss
cd raiplaysoundrss
npm install
npm run build
npm run start

Then open:

http://localhost:3000/programmi/battiti

Run it behind a reverse proxy (Caddy, Nginx, etc.) and bind it to localhost. Do not expose Node's service port directly.

Or, keep reading.

How it works

1. Fetch program data:

https://www.raiplaysound.it/:type/:name.json

2. Extract episodes:

• title
• description
• publication date
• metadata

3. Resolve new audio:

• follow either downloadable_audio.url or audio.url
• extract a stable MP3 url (or MP4 if unavailable) from CDN

4. Cache results:

• avoids re-resolving URLs
• incremental updates only

5. Generate RSS:

• RSS 2.0 + iTunes extensions
• compatible with podcast apps

Highlights:

• Generic endpoint for any program
• Exposes an /health endpoint for debugging and a /stats endpoint for fun
• Processes queries in a limited concurrent pool so that new shows initialization is fast without flooding the upstream service with hundreds of simultaneous requests
• Rate limits requests so that your server doesn't burn down
• No scraping, no headless browser, no fragile selectors
• No transcoding or storage required

Limitations

• Depends on RaiPlay Sound’s internal API structure
• MP3 URLs may change over time (handled via cache refresh every week)
• No guarantee of long-term stability (as with any unofficial service, but also official, apparently)

Legal notice

This project only consumes data and media URLs already exposed by RaiPlay Sound's public frontend. It does not bypass authentication, DRM, or access controls.

Why did you make this?

I'm approaching my thirties and fall asleep too early to listen to Battiti, but I don't want to lose my edge.

How long did it take?

Less than writing this.

But I don't have a server

Check the repository URL. You might find a public instance.