Universal Music Strikes Deal With Online Service

Universal Music Group has struck its most sweeping deal ever with an independent online music company, letting Dallas-based Streamwaves offer thousands of songs on demand for a flat fee.

It’s the first time the world’s largest record company, a subsidiary of Vivendi Universal, has licensed its entire catalog for a subscription music service that it doesn’t own. Universal also has made its songs available to subscribers of Pressplay, an online music venture it co-owns with Sony Music.

The slow pace of licensing by some record firms has drawn scrutiny from the Justice Department, which has launched an antitrust investigation. Analysts also have criticized the labels for failing to provide a legitimate alternative to the unauthorized services that let consumers copy songs free.

Streamwaves, which also has licenses from EMI Recorded Music and top music publishers, offers unlimited access to an online jukebox for $17 a month. Unlike Pressplay, however, Streamwaves doesn’t let subscribers download songs or record them onto CDs.

Other online jukebox services include Listen.com’s Rhapsody, which has licenses from every major record company but Universal.

Jon Healey