Music.com Takes 'Risk,' Backs Windows Media

The U.K. online news service the Register (http://www.theregister.co.uk/ )
reported Thursday that the online music distributor would adopt the
Microsoft
produced Windows Media as its standard. Joe Laszlo, Jupiter broadband
services analyst, said the move made some sense. But it may also come back
to haunt the service.

Many record companies have expressed displeasure with the MP3 format,
largely because no standard has yet been developed that can effectively
block pirating of music files created in the format.

"(Music.com) certainly does have an interest in trying to appease the
label which are the source of probably most of the music they distribute,"
he said. "And with MP3 being an insecure format, it makes sense for them to
back another standard more strongly."

However, Laszlo said, the move may prove a shot in the foot to Music.com's
ultimate ambitions.

"The MP3 format is certainly not going away," Laszlo said. "A lot of
consumers, especially the heaviest consumers of music online, find the
format one that they like. It's one that's widely supported."

He said, "By refusing to provide files in that format, there's a good
chance that some of their audience is just going to go somewhere else
where they can find MP3. So it's probably kind of a risky move on their
part, but probably one that they felt they needed to make, just because
of the opposition of the record labels to MP3."

Officials at Music.com did not return phone calls, and could not be
reached for comment.

Music.com is on the Web at http://www.music.com/.

Reported by Newsbytes.com, http://www.newsbytes.com.