MySpace extended an olive branch to music labels today, announcing it will use the audio ID service Gracenote to filter out users' unauthorized streams of copyrighted music.
The new policy is likely intended to mollify aggrieved music industry executives like Universal Music Group Chairman Doug Morris, who said at a conference in September, "We believe these new businesses [like MySpace] are copyright infringers and owe us tens of millions of dollars."
Many MySpace users stream songs on their pages. The new filtering policy extends to the copyright-protected material of popular and unsigned artists alike.
Rupert Murdoch, MySpace's owner, surely risks PR disaster. Up to now he's largely left the vast online community alone; this move will alter the MySpace experience and anger users.
--Benjamin Nugent
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