Internet radio is a broadcasting service transmitted via the Internet. Not every internet "radio station" has a corresponding traditional radio station. Many internet radio stations are completely independent from traditional ("terrestrial") radio stations and broadcast only on the Internet. Broadcasting on the Internet is usually referred to as streaming.
Because the radio signal is relayed over the Internet, it is possible to access the stations from anywhere in the world—for example, to listen to an Australian radio station from Europe or America. This makes it a popular service for expatriates and for people who have interests that may not be adequately catered for by their local radio stations (such as progressive rock). Some of the internet radio services offer news, sports, talkback, and various genres of music—everything that is on the radio station being re-broadcast. Listenership is no longer restricted to a hundred miles, but can stretch thousands of miles. Listenership is no longer set to five million, but instead five billion.
For instance, one of Germany's most popular real-world radio stations has become world famous because of internet broadcasting. Das Ding can be listened to at http://www.dasding.de
WSBF is another example. Colleges all over America are utilizing the Internet to get college radio out into the world. College stations are amazing at echoing the heartbeat of underground pop culture. WSBF can be heard at http://www.WSBF.net
Many privatly funded stations exist, which serve multitudes of purposes. Besides sending out subversive messages, some try to do the music community a favor and play bands many people may not have heard of, in order to get unnamed and unlabled bands, recognition. A good example of this is Mental Hostpital Radio, suitably viewable at http://www.mentalhospitalradio.com
# wj is a contributing author