AOL puts legal music downloading to the test

NEWS The public's willingness to pay for legal online music will be put to its biggest test this week with the launch of MusicNet on AOL. AOL has planned this launch for more than a year, but were delayed because of concerns about immature technology and the lack of available content for online distribution, company executives said. The service will continue to evolve, but the bulk of those concerns now appear to have been met, they said. MusicNet will be similar to rival offerings such as PressPlay, but it will be deeply rooted in the broader AOL service and billing system - which gives it a massive marketing advantage. PJ McNealy, research director with GartnerG2, said: "This is the biggest experiment yet, with 27 million reasons to watch. It's a big guinea pig that labels will all be closely watching for next six months." It has been more than a year since authorised music subscription services first launched as a music industry counterbalance to illegal file-swapping software such as that developed by the then defunct Napster and surviving peer-to-peer outlaw KaZaA. However, the chance to pay for something they can easily get for free has not been one consumers have jumped at. Record label executives welcomed AOL's release, calling it a big stride forward for MusicNet's technology, and for reaching new online audiences. "This is really a step forward in terms of a consumer-friendly legal service," said Ted Cohen, vice president for new media at EMI Recorded Music. "This is prime time."