Online Music Arena Gets Wider

barnesandnoble.com added music to its arsenal of e-tail offerings Wednesday, leveling its playing field with competitor Amazon.com as overall Internet stocks dipped in midday trading.

internet.com’s Internet Stock Index was down midday 9.13, or 1.60 percent to 561.89, the Nasdaq Composite slid 3.76 to 2733.02 and the Dow Jones industrial average was down 27.22 to 11107.9.

The news that barnesandnoble.com (BNBN) will now offer music titles for sale edged its stock up 3/4 to 18. Amazon.com (AMZN) will likely feel the heat as a result, which sent its stock down 2 7/8 to 124. Music e-tailer CDNOW (CDNW), now a competitor of barnesandnoble.com, saw it stock up 13/16 in midday trading to 17 7/8.

Anticipation is the name of the game in the market today. Yahoo! (YHOO) is expected to release its earnings this afternoon, and hesitant investors are keeping its stock down 7 7/8 to 167 1/4. The street is also waiting for Internet IPO Musicmaker.com to go this afternoon. It is priced at $14 per share.

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