Last modified: Tuesday, June 26, 2007 12:48 AM EDT Web radio going silent BY TED NESI SUN CHRONICLE STAFF Listeners who turn on their favorite Internet radio station today expecting to hear Bob Marley, the Monkees, or Oscar Peterson are in for a surprise - squealing dolphins and public service announcers. "Webcasters," as Internet radio broadcasters are known, are going silent today to protest a decision by a government royalties board that they say will put them out of business July 15. The federal Copyright Royalty Board voted earlier this year to increase the royalty rate Internet broadcasters pay to play music by almost 300 percent for the biggest Webcasters and up to 1,200 percent for small Webcasters, according to SaveNetRadio.org, a coalition formed to oppose the change. "If the rates stand as is, it would kill our business," said Justin Savage, who runs LoudCity, an Internet music company in Somerville that helps amateur broadcasters run their own stations. Internet radio has surged in popularity in recent years, as the variety of music on over-the-air radio grows smaller and smaller. Arbitron and Bridge Ratings estimate that 50 million to 70 million Americans tune in to Internet radio each month. Most Internet stations have relatively few listeners. Savage said that the audience on LoudMusic peaks at about 9,000 people in the afternoon. In some ways, he said, appealing to a niche market is the point. "What's great about Internet radio in general is that there's so much diversity," Savage said, pointing out that some cities no longer have a rock or country station broadcasting over the airwaves. "That's going to be lost." Today, however, listeners who tune in will hear nature sounds and public service announcements notifying them of the royalty change, rather than the usual musical offerings. Savage and others hope that today's "National Day of Silence," as it's being called, will convince more of their listeners to contact their congressmen and senators and ask them to support a bill, the Internet Radio Equality Act, pending in the U.S. House. "I'm very proud of the business we've built up over the past two years," Savage said. "It's kind of a sad situation to be in."