[Stardust]

LONDON -- The BBC is considering filtering out crowd noise from its World Cup broadcasts following a deluge of complaints about vuvuzelas.

By Tuesday morning, the BBC had received 545 complaints from viewers about the constant buzzing sound of the plastic horns used by fans at games in South Africa.

"We have already taken steps to minimize the noise and are continuing to monitor the situation," the BBC said in a statement. "If the vuvuzela continues to impact on audience enjoyment, we will look at what other options we can take to reduce the volume further."

The broadcaster is considering offering viewers the possibility of muting most ambient noise while maintaining game commentary through the "red button" digital service. Viewers would push the red button on their remote control to receive the quieter broadcast on a separate channel.

The BBC would offer the option in the next few days.

On Monday, FIFA president Sepp Blatter defended the vuvuzela, saying they would not be banned from stadiums.

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/world-cup/s...901&ver=us