Internet broadcast startup Ustream.TV said Tuesday that it completed a $2 million angel round and that U.S. General Wesley Clark joined its board.

The Los Altos, California-based startup provides a free, web-based platform for live video broadcasting. Politicians, including several U.S. presidential candidates, have used Ustream. Weddings and other private events have also been shared real-time on the site, which has about 5,000 hours of video from up to 300 simultaneous broadcasts each day.

In-Stat analyst Gerry Kaufhold thinks 2008 will see a surge in companies entering the sector. Potential consumers are increasing as fast as the rise in household broadband connectivity, he said.

“No company thinks it’ll be the next national network anytime soon,” said Mr. Kaufhold. “The first step is to see if the technology really works around the clock.”

Almost half of all U.S. households now have broadband connections, and elsewhere, such as in South Korea and the Netherlands, the percentage is higher.

Ustream and its competitors, such as Zattoo, Justin.TV, and Mogulus—like other web sites that offer free services—will need to attract large and consistent audiences before advertising dollars roll in.

But they will be in competition with one another and mainstream broadcasters, who have content and are looking for ways to earn revenue from the Internet. Two major U.S. professional sports leagues—Major League Baseball and the National Football League—now broadcast games live on their web sites.

Ustream hopes such interactive features as live polling and applause meters will draw consumers. Viewers can make requests and pose real-time questions with broadcasters. And much like YouTube, the site is a stage for people who otherwise wouldn’t have the ability to share their content with a global audience.

“You get a rich, interactive broadcast experience,” Ustream CEO Chuck Wallace said. “It is empowering a huge set of people who didn’t have this medium before.”

Mr. Wallace also said that creating Ustream’s platform was not easy, and that YouTube or mainstream broadcasters who want to enter the category will have serious technological hurdles to overcome.

If the technology among these startups proves attractive, expect acquisitions, said Mr. Kaufhold.

Launched in March, Ustream will use the funding, which was led by Western Technology Investors and the Band of Angels, to continue building its core technology, add more functionality, and hire more employees.

Mr. Wallace said Gen. Clark, who shot to national prominence in the United States during his Democratic presidential bid in 2003, would bring leadership and political contacts to the startup. Ustream’s founders, Brad Hunstable and John Ham, have military backgrounds.