In my column on Sept. 7, I discussed how the Internet was providing aspiring cartoonists an outlet for their work. Cartoonists are by far not the only ones utilizing the Internet as a creative outlet; another growing source of use is Internet radio.

While more and more major radio stations are turning to providing content on the Web to gain additional listeners, a majority of Internet stations available are independently run by just one or a few individuals.

One example is 3wk.com, an underground radio station based in St. Louis. According to its Web site, it started out of a dislike for corporate-run music. It has now grown to a nationally recognized Internet station and provides playlists of unknown artists who it feels deserve the exposure.

But stations like 3wk.com are currently in the minority. Most aspiring DJs turn to a site like Live365.com. Live365 is an Internet radio station network, providing users with the means necessary to quickly and easily set up their own radio station.

“Anyone can build a station,” said Alan Wallace, Live365’s senior vice president of communications. “We have had over 45,000 people do so to date.”

Wallace said Live365 was created to help users get their voices and ideas heard.

“We are the only site that allows anyone to be able to build a station on the Internet and some of those DJs have had over 2 million people listen to them,” he said.

As Wallace mentioned, the number of Internet listeners is rapidly growing. This is because Internet radio offers many advantages over standard radio, besides being an excellent starting source for amateurs.

“Our selection is unique,” Wallace said. “Listeners to Live365 can find any type of entertainment imaginable.”

Despite the growing popularity of Internet radio, it has still met with its own share of problems. Visitors to eradiolive.com are met with nothing but a message concerning the site’s current disablement due to issues about the right to broadcast content over the Internet.

Live365 and 3wk have avoided this by being large enough to be licensed by the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers, helping to avoid the issue of broadcast rights. But Internet traffic and poor connections still hamper listening to Internet radio. At times, stations cut in and out or stop playing altogether, requiring you to reload them. Also, the audio quality on a station varies greatly, making some a very poor listening experience.

As Internet technology becomes more reliable, so will Internet radio. This is why despite the current technological downfalls of Internet radio, Wallace and Live365 are optimistic about the future.

“All radio will be broadcast globally via the Internet within 20 years,” Wallace said.