Listen.com Collects ‘Em All

Crowning itself the new king of online music, Listen.com Monday added the last major record label to its Rhapsody service.

The San Francisco-based online music company that develops and distributes Rhapsody, a digital music subscription service, said Monday it has signed a non-exclusive licensing agreement with Universal Music Group (UMG), a division of Vivendi Universal .

The deal gives Listen.com users access to artists like India Aire, Eminem, Limp Bizkit and U2.

UMG consists of such well-known record labels as Decca, Interscope Geffen A&M Records, Island Def Jam Music Group, Lost Highway Records, MCA Nashville, MCA Records, Mercury Records, Motown Records, Philips and Polydor.

Listen CEO Sean Ryan said he was tickled pink because he now has a more complete selection of titles than similar music download sites like MusicNet and pressplay.

“With the addition of music from Universal, consumers finally have a single, easy-to-use service where they can explore a vast library of music from artists on all of the major labels,” said Ryan.

In addition to the UMG digital catalog, Listen.com has previously licensed full digital catalogs from BMG, EMI Recorded Music, Sony Music Entertainment and Warner Music Group. The company has also licensed music from more than 50 independent labels, including Zomba Recording Corporation, TVT Records, Bar/None Records and Sub Pop Records.

Listen.com’s Rhapsody subscription service can be downloaded for free access to editorial content and Listen.com’s streaming radio. If a subscriber wants to choose specific music/artists and build an online music collection, there is an additional on-demand subscription service called “All Access” that gives users on-demand streaming playback for $9.95 monthly.

Subscribers can sign up for Rhapsody through the www.listen.com Web site or through one of Listen.com’s distribution partners, including Terra Lycos, Speakeasy, JamBase, DownBeat, and Naxos of America.

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