AOL this week unleashed a new premium music subscription service built upon MusicNet, a joint venture between AOL, RealNetworks, EMI and BMG. MusicNet on AOL comes over a year after Real launched its own MusicNet-based offering, dubbed RealOne.

AOL will initially feature three subscription levels, starting at $3.95 USD for 20 music streams and 20 downloads. For $9.95, subscribers can access unlimited streams and downloads, but songs cannot be transferred to CD or portable device.

The ability to burn 10 songs to a CD -- using technology from Sonic Solutions -- raises the cost to $17.95, and a fourth tier allowing 5 burns for $13.95 will be introduced this spring. AOL plans to offer a la carte burns late this year.

MusicNet was first demoed to BetaNews at Streaming Media West in June 2001, and Napster was expected to launch the first MusicNet subscription service that year before the company folded. Despite being one of the founding members, AOL said it decided to wait until MusicNet was more mature before rolling out its own service.

"Over the past year, AOL has led the way in making online music mainstream by working with artists, record labels and music publishers to use the online medium as a primary promotional and sales platform," said Kevin Conroy, Senior Vice President and General Manager at AOL Entertainment. "Now, with the launch of MusicNet on AOL, we are able to meet consumer demand for finding, downloading and burning music in an easy and convenient way that also respects copyright ownership."

AOL members can sign up for a 30-day free trial of MusicNet on AOL before deciding on a subscription tier. Downloads may be accessed by up to two computers and parental controls are available to limit access to certain content.