Microsoft Launches European Rival To Apple's ITunes

by Robin Pilgrim, LawAndTax-News.com, London

19 August 2003

It emerged last week that Microsoft has pipped Apple to the post in offering pay-as-you go music downloads to European consumers.

Earlier this year, Apple launched its iTunes service as a legal alternative to the allegedly illegal file sharing services offered by providers such as Kazaa and Grokster, which are currently coming under heavy fire from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).

Although iTunes has proved to be a runaway success, selling upwards of 6.5 million songs in its first three month according to estimates, it does not yet offer this service to European Mac users, because of unresolved licensing issues.

However the Out-Law news service reported that in conjunction with On Demand Distribution (OD2), which has deals with five major record labels and the leading independents, Microsoft is now offering a catalogue of more than 200,000 tracks, by 8,500 artists, at three levels of access.

For varying amounts of credits, purchased on a pay-as-you-go or subscription basis, internet users can listen to streaming clips which are not downloaded to their computers, download tunes to their hard drive for a one year period, or download tracks which can be burned onto CDs, or transfered to MP3 players.

This follows a recent announcement from the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) that it has not ruled out following the RIAA's aggressive lead in dealing with the users of illegal file sharing services.

The US recording industry body has begun to issue subpoenas to internet service providers asking for the personal details of P2P file sharers, leading the BPI to announce that following the implementation of the new EU copyright directive later this year:

'While it is not our intention to sue it is not something we would rule out once the directive is enforced. The heavy users are the ones we'd go after.'

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