• by Gavin O'Malley  @mp_gavin, April 28, 2005

Infinity Broadcasting Wednesday said it plans to bring podcasting mainstream by launding the first radio station comprised entirely of listener-created podcasts by May 16. The station, KYOURadio, will be available in San Francisco at 1550 KYCY-AM--which until now was devoted to talk-radio--and streamed online at www.kyouradio.com.

Both the AM broadcast and the online stream will include ads. Infinity said it is considering the launch of a new ad program within the next year, which will allow marketers to place audio ads in podcasts on the Web. Analgous to Google's keyword-driven search ads, the system would use podcast metatags to match a podcast's audio content to corresponding ads.

Considered fringe until only recently, podcasting is the act of uploading audio programs to the Web, following which the files can be downloaded to multimedia players for listening at a later date.

"There is a profound shift underway in the way we use technology that allows everyone to have a voice," Infinty CEO Joel Hollander said in a statement.

Beginning Wednesday, users were encouraged to begin uploading their podcasts for consideration at no cost. The station's producers will screen submitted content for quality standards.

Infinity said it plans to cover the cost of music-licensing fees if and when podcasters choose to play music from major record labels.

Infinity's announcement came the same day a group of guerrilla marketing executives announced the formation of the International Nanocasting Alliance (INA). Billed as the podcasting community's first international trade organization, the INA will focus on developing commercial applications of podcasting.