James Delahunty
25 Mar 2008 17:22
According to Sony BMG Chief Executive Rolf Schmidt-Holtz, the music giant is currently developing a music download service that would offer unlimited access to the company's catalog on a subscription fee basis. The music will be compatible with many different brands of MP3 player including Apple Inc.'s iPod. The service was announced in German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung.
While Schmidt-Holtz didn't give any time frame for when this service is expected to become available to consumers, he said that the subscription model would include a fee of about €6 -- €8 per month for unlimited access to Sony BMG's catalog, which includes artists such as Leona Lewis, Alicia Keys and Celine Dion.
Interestingly, he also that it was "even possible that clients could keep some songs indefinitely, that they would own them even after the subscription expired." The plans were confirmed by a spokesman of Bertelsmann, which owns a 50% stake in Sony BMG Music Entertainment, a joint venture with Japan's Sony Corp.
Schmidt-Holtz is quoted as saying that Sony BMG was in talks with several other major music distributors but didn't name them, and that the service would possibly be available for users of mobile phones through deals with operators.