MySpace is the biggest social networking site in the world, with
107 million account holders, according to the company. Just last
month it agreed to modifications to its terms and conditions to
pacify a campaign led by singer Billy Bragg.
The terms and conditions had appeared to grant MySpace rights
over music hosted there, and Bragg campaigned to have them changed
so that they explicitly stated that MySpace, which is owned by
Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation, had no claim over rights in the
music.
"I don't want to find out in 25 years time that 20% of my
earnings are owned by Apple or whoever. I want the right to be able
to exploit my own back catalogue," Bragg told OUT-LAW. "If I choose
to sign that away to someone for life of copyright that's my choice
but before that happens I want kids to know what that means and
what the ramifications of that are."
With that legal uncertainty cleared up, MySpace founder Chris
DeWolfe has told news agency Reuters that the company will open a
digital music shop to rival Apple's iTunes.
“The goal is to be one of the biggest digital music stores out
there,” DeWolfe told Reuters. “Everyone we’ve spoken to definitely
wants an alternative to iTunes and the iPod. MySpace could be that
alternative."
The site is now the most visited in the US, according to
research from Hitwise. It was sold to News Corporation last autumn
for $580 million. DeWolfe plans to use its dominance in the US in
the still-growing social networking business to provide an
alternative to traditional online music sales.
DeWolfe's plans involve allowing bands to set their own prices
for their music, with the company charging a fixed distribution
fee. Snocap, a company founded by Napster creator Shawn Fanning,
will manage the service, said DeWolfe.
