WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Digital radio broadcasts that bring CD-quality sound to the airwaves could lead to unfettered song copying if protections are not put in place, a recording-industry trade group warned on Friday.

Without copy protections, music fans could cherry-pick songs off the air and redistribute them over the Internet, further deepening the copyright woes of record labels, the Recording Industry Association of America (news - web sites) said.

U.S. regulators at the Federal Communications Commission (news - web sites) should ensure that the broadcast format limits such copying so radio stations don't turn the airwaves into a giant file-sharing network, RIAA officials said.

"A little bit of prudence right now goes a long way," RIAA CEO Mitch Bainwol said in a conference call.

Radio stations might resist the RIAA's plans.

"We want to roll out this technology as quickly as possible and if this is going to delay that, that's something that's going to cause consumers and broadcasters a lot of concern," said Dennis Warton, a spokesman for the National Association of Broadcasters.

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