Myspace Music

MySpace Music is supposedly being launched within the next few weeks. MySpace Music will be a new direction for the well-known music discovery website and will include ad-supported on-demand streaming playlisting. It will also include DRM-free (digital rights management) downloads powered by Amazon that will allow the downloads to go right into iTunes.

MySpace Music really has the potential to make a big splash in the music industry. For one, it is the first time that a music discovery site is teaming up with all the labels (EMI almost there) and some major sponsors to allow for ad-supported streaming.

You can purchase music with iTunes very easily, but it is not all that conducive to music discovery. They are trying to change that with their new Genius software, but most people I know have been using MySpace for music discovery.

In addition, bands will be able to use the site to sell tickets and merchandise. By adding all of these features, MySpace is set to expand their role as the biggest source for music discovery as well as be a formidable force of competition for iTunes.

MySpace Music is also seeking venture capital in the range of $200 million to expand their business even further. Will the venture capital firms pony up the money? Will they have faith enough in the venture to expect venture-capital-like returns? That will be a big telling point on the financial industry’s faith in this new venture.

Stay tuned,
Erik
erikrostad.com