Practice 3　　BBC World Service is the world's biggest radio network, with 140 million listeners across the globe, broadcasting in 44 languages, heard on short-wave, medium-wave, FM and satellite. We have an ambitious plan for the brand new technology of Digital Broadcasting by Satellite, due to start next year. The appearance of the Internet has taken us broadcasters all by surprise. The Internet has enabled any radio station anywhere to become an international broadcaster with only a minor investment. Although its sound quality is far from perfect, it excels that of short-wave. Internet radio does not only mean competition but also great opportunities. The BBC is taking the Internet very seriously, for it's a cheap way of getting a reasonable quality signal to places in the even our short-wave transmitters can't adequately reach. Very recently, we launched “BBC On-Line”, which incorporates a 24-hour news service. And the users can hear programmes in Mandarin, Arabic, Spanish and Russian.