SCALABLE, REAL-TIME MESSAGING SYSTEM

Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on a computer storage medium, for receiving from a plurality of publisher clients a plurality of messages, assigning each of the messages to one of a plurality of distinct channels wherein each channel comprises an ordered plurality of messages, storing messages of each of the channels in one or more respective buffers according to the order, each buffer having a respective time-to-live, retrieving messages for one or more of the channels from respective buffers having time-to-lives that have not expired and according to the order, and sending the retrieved messages to a plurality of subscriber clients.