Podcasting—named the “Word of the Year” last year by Webster's Dictionary—is a form of broadcasting audio or video-style multimedia, which is transmitted over the internet and made available for downloading on to portable devices.

The unveiling of Apple's iPod in 2001 made podcasting the household name it is today, but the concept was developed in October 2000 by an internet-media mogul. It was four years later the term “podcasting” was coined, giving “techies” the opportunity to read up on “how to podcast” articles and then download podcasts for viewing on a computer or portable device.

Podcasting initially appealed primarily to those who wanted to broadcast (er, podcast) their own radio programs, but today it is used for a variety of reasons. Several religious organizations post sermons on the internet through public webpage servers that parishioners may have missed (what some refer to as “Godcasting”); television networks offer some of their programs as podcasts; politicians use podcasting as an outlet for supporters and potential voters to learn about their policies; professional sports teams use podcasting to post color commentary for their out-of-state fandom; newspapers use podcasts as another outlet for people to get their news, weather and traffic; even teachers and college professors use podcasts so students can get the notes on lectures they may have missed.

To put it simply, podcasting is big business, showing no sign of slow down, as data analysts like eMarketer predict 10 million people will download a podcast this year.

With the help of the electronic guide, you can produce a show that potentially millions will download. You'll learn everything there is to know about the podcasting business, like how to guarantee your podcasts get downloaded, listened to and viewed, what equipment you'll need (both for video and audio), experts' rationale on why podcasting is king, quick start-up tips, and why podcasting has benefited everyone whose taken advantage of it. This and a whole lot more is found inside the e-pages of the electronic guide.