RSSYahoo, Sony BMG agree to content licensing deal
By Ed Oswald | Published November 20, 2007, 3:08 PM
Looking to avoid a similar legal mess to that of YouTube, Yahoo on Tuesday announced that it had reached a licensing deal with Sony BMG.
The label counts among its artists such popular acts as Jennifer Lopez, the Foo Fighters, Bruce Springsteen, Celine Dion, and Britney Spears. It signed a similar deal with YouTube last year.
Like the YouTube deal, Sony will receive a portion of the ad revenue from pages where its content appears. Yahoo may allow content from the BMG's artists to be uploaded to its web properties.
In addition, the Sunnyvale, Calif. company will also be allowed to distribute Sony BMG content through its media players and widgets that users can place on non-Yahoo sites.
"This partnership not only enhances our video offerings, but also offers Sony BMG artists broad exposure among our global audience of music and entertainment fans," Yahoo Music chief Ian Rogers said.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. The deal is the first of its kind for Yahoo, and likely is not the last considering the current legal climate surrounding digital music.
One less job for the middlemen, thank god for contracts shouts george michael and the purple prince laughing from the shadows.
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