MySpace Teams With Record Companies To Create Music Site

The New York Times reports on a deal between MySpace and three of the four major music labels to develop a new music website. Users will be able to stream songs for free, purchase downloadable tracks, and (possibly) pay a flat monthly fee for unlimited access. From the Times: "Exact terms of the deal and details about the new site, like prices for downloaded music tracks, were not disclosed. But MySpace did say the site would offer songs free of digital rights management software or D.R.M., which is used to prevent illicit copying but can create technical hurdles for buyers. The songs would be playable on any portable music device, including Apple's iPod. For the music industry, the deal is partly born of desperation. In the face of widespread, escalating online piracy, music sales dropped to $11.5 billion in 2006 from a peak in 1999 of nearly $15 billion."

Comments

Let me fix that for you ...

[tomhudson]

In the face of widespread, escalating online piracy, music sales dropped to $11.5 billion in 2006 from a peak in 1999 of nearly $15 billion."

In the face of imploding pop-tarts like Britney Speares, music sales dropped to $11.5 billion in 2006 from a peak in 1999 of nearly $15 billion."

There, fixed it for you.

Re:Because of iTunes?

[Anonymous Coward]

While I have long been skeptical of MySpace's ability to do anything other than try to cause seizures in people, the fact that they seem finally willing to do something useful en masse is certainly giving me some hope for the future.

Unfortunately, I am not looking forward to the auditory equivalent of MySpace.

Re:Because of iTunes?

[samkass]

iTunes is the only thing standing between the consumer and the record labels desire to charge $2.99 per track. The illusion of competition evaporates when you realize that all the popular music is owned by a couple of companies. They have the monopoly. If iTunes "stranglehold" on distribution is broken, it will become the consumer against the record labels directly, without Apple to stand in the way. That's why other sites are able to offer such deals-- the record labels are intentionally trying to break Apple's control of distribution not out of altruism but because they think that it will lead to increased profits (ie. higher prices) down the line.