14 DAY TRIAL // Yahoo! was a bit of a visionary when it decided to go for the music market with all it had. First came an MP3 player, and then the plans to deliver ad-supported free tracks started taking shape. Amazon has geared up for the same purpose and Apple's iTunes' position starts to look shaky every moment passing.
MySpace is now said to be thinking about a joint venture with the four biggest record companies, EMI, Sony BMG, Warner Music and Universal Music, but so far nothing has been nailed down. Late last year, the world's biggest social network launched a site that hosts interviews and recording sessions with some of the hottest stars, also offering the option to buy songs by the bunch. That was the problem, the bunch was predetermined and many users passed on it for also being really expensive.
The deal in talks right now is supposed to offer free advertising-supported music, being streamed over the Internet, as well as a store to sell the tracks for all of the players on the market, unlike Apple's iTunes, plus a subscription music service, as Reuters reports.
"The joint venture would likely involve music companies taking an unspecified equity stake in the venture in exchange for the rights for the music, with News Corp owning the biggest chunk," Kenneth Li and Yinka Adegoke wrote.
To say it plain, iTunes' future does not look bright at all, with Amazon breathing down its neck and with MySpace thinking about partnering with it for a so-called white label version for the service. I wouldn't bet that Apple has what it takes to hold News Corp and Amazon at bay, if they attempt to make a push to overthrow iTunes' dominance.
MySpace is trying to make this work as a part of its plan to remain the top social network, by adding features that Facebook, its biggest competitor, has not yet thought of.