 |
|
|
MySpace is planning to make an entrance
into the digital music business, rumors have it, and is expected to close a
deal with none others than Sony BMG and Warner Music, and who knows, others might
follow, sources familiar with the companies said, according to The
New York Post. We could be in for an
official deal this week, but none of the companies accepted to comment on the
speculations.
“The concept of the joint
venture is to bring in all forms of [making money from digital music] and much
more tightly integrate them,” a person familiar with the talks said, according to
the same source. As it appears, if the deal is indeed to be signed this week,
the service could become available later this year: “Everybody’s operating with
a sense of urgency to try to close it out,” another source said.
Rumors of a possible deal
between MySpace and big names in the industry music have started circulating
earlier this month, as several newspapers reported, although to this date, none
of the assumptions has been confirmed. The Post reported that users could
expect later this year to find anything from digital downloads (MP3) to
ad-supported streaming video and ringtones.
Still a long way to go, but a
MySpace music store could create quite a competition to Apple’s iTunes, which
was recently declared the number 2 music retailer in the United States in 2007 after
Wal-Mart, as NPD Group’s MusicWatch survey showed.
The record companies to take
part in this deal are expected to hold less than 50 percent stake in the joint
venture, the same newspaper reports, and depending on the market share, each of
the companies will be granted a piece of the label. This is a huge deal for
MySpace, considering their joint venture would bring the second and third
largest music companies as business partners.
© 2007 - 2008 - eFluxMedia