MySpace streams music from Sony BMG

 

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By Reuters

Posted on 17 Oct 2007 at 12:41

MySpace has reached a licensing deal with Sony BMG to stream music videos from its artists, a catalogue including Britney Spears, Beyonce Knowles and Bruce Springsteen.

In return for Sony BMG making its music videos and selected audio material available on the artists' profile pages, MySpace has agreed to share any advertising revenue generated from the pages with the music giant.

In the past the site has been seen as a promotional platform for new and upcoming bands, but to date, has played a minor role as a revenue source for major music companies and has been accused of allowing its users to upload music without authorisation.

Last year, Universal Music Group sued MySpace for copyright infringement by enabling users to reformat videos to be played back or sent to others.

Sony BMG is seeking new ways to make money amid a rapid downturn in CD sales, and despite the success of digital music, sales have so far failed to make up the shortfall.

"This new effort is a great way to build new audiences for our artists, bring value to fans, and offer exciting new opportunities to advertisers," says Thomas Hesse, president of global digital business at Sony BMG.

The deal is the second major move for MySpace which recently tied up a deal with Skype to provide its users with free phone calls.