The future of CD sales looks doomed: it was predicted in a recent Forbes magazine survey that by 2012 sales from music downloads would outweigh sales of CDs.
Even that estimate looks to be shaky now as totally free, totally legal download sites have been given a huge boost in the unlikely form of Sony BMG. Sony BMG is not renowned for assisting any aspect of music downloads, and certainly not for endorsing sites that actively encourage it.
We7 – Peter Gabriel’s fledgling free music download service – has done the impossible and secured Sony’s backing for its venture. From the end of April all of Sony’s back catalogue will be available completely free for streaming from the site. In terms of securing a future for the site, and for music downloads in general, this is a coup of epic proportions.
Interestingly there are rumors of many other partnerships between big name industry players: mobile provider 02 has announced a partnership with music download giant Napster, who are also in talks with Vodafone. Interesting times for music downloads and for us, the users.