Sirius to Broadcast Amateur Podcasts

Podcasting got another major boost Monday as Sirius Satellite Radio announced that it had struck a deal with Adam Curry, former MTV VJ and so-called "father of podcasting," to broadcast podcasts from his newly formed network. Podcasts are user-created radio shows that range in topics from music to politics.

Curry started to promote podcasting in mid-2004, and according to some estimates, nearly 6 million people have listened to the mini-broadcasts. The name podcast comes from the iPod music player, which the concept was originally intended for.

Users download the broadcasts from the Internet by using an RSS newsreader, much in the same way Web log syndication works, regardless of the brand of music player they own.

According to the deal, Sirius has devoted a four-hour block on Channel 148, its general talk channel, to Adam Curry's new podcasting network PodShow.com. Curry will be free to fill the four hours with podcasts that his network finds interesting.

"Podcasting is not just about portable media players," Curry said in a statement. "By combining the creative talent and content of available podcasting with superior programming of Sirius, we can create and showcase talent that terrestrial radio listeners would not be able to hear. We think that this partnership is about introducing the best of podcasting to the world."

Part of the deal also suggests that Sirius content may make it onto PodShow.com; however, a time frame was not announced. Curry's show is slated to debut on May 13.