News Microsoft creates static over new radio feature

Wow. I never thought I'd hear myself saying this, but way to go Microsoft. If Commercial radio in the US is anything like it is here in the UK (and I have it on good authority that it's actually worse), stripping the commercials and the brain dead DJ's out is a good thing!

This from SFGate:

Software giant Microsoft took center stage last week when it began selling songs online, but another feature of its new MSN Music service is quietly raising eyebrows in the radio industry.

Microsoft is using playlists from more than 900 local radio stations around the country to create its own soundalike Internet stations -- stripped of local DJ chatter, traffic, weather and commercials.

The new MSN Radio offers Internet stations playing most of the same songs heard on over-the-air outlets like Berkeley's KBLX, "The Quiet Storm''; New York's WNEW, "The Mix 102.9''; or Chicago's WLUP, "The Loop.''

"It results in a more pleasant experience because you don't have the ads or the DJs,'' Rob Bennett, senior director for MSN Entertainment, said during a press briefing last week.

More here

Yeah, but come on - compared to commercial radio, it's only the diet-coke of evil...

 

so its ok to strip ad/logos out of something and sell it on as your own product but copying it leaving the ad/logos intact isn't. Redmond is a little bit hypocritical isn't it.

 

I don't agree with it. It's certainly not MS's place to be doing such a thing. If they changed their entire stance on copyright infringement, then okay, but this sounds like a plot to take over commercial radio as we know it:

MS creates MSN Radio with all these soundalike stations...
MS creates internet radio that you can install in your home/car...
People buy MSRadio and stop listeneing to standard stations...
Then the other stations have two choices:
1) decrease commercials, lose money, go out of business
OR
2) increase commercials to make up for loss of listeners, lose more listeners, go out of business

Thus leaving MS to rule the world.
</conspiracy-theory>

 

I personally figure it is Microsoft's attempt at taking away from Yahoo!'s Launch on-line service. Launch is free with ads, but you can pay for more stations and options; like the option to listen to more then 800 songs a month on "Your" customisable station, and in High audio quality which sounds very good. I wouldn't be surprised if Microsoft didn't roll out with something like this in the future.