We have uncovered evidence to back up the rumor that Facebook plans to announce a new music service to compete with both MySpace and iTunes. On his blackrimglasses blog, the Warner Bros. Records' technology department posted the following short -- but telling -- post:
Need a Facebook app programmer
Please contact me. Its a rush job, but needs to be good
ethan [@] warnerbrosrecords.com
I'd be reallysurprised if the technology head of a major label wanted to hire aFacebook programmer for a quick, rush job, were Facebook not planningsome sort of major label music initiative in the near future. ThisFacebook Music rumor appears to be true.
According to to Co-ed Magazine,
the site's band URLs will look similar to those on MySpace(Facebook.com/bandname). Facebook users will have to become fans ofthose artists in order to stream the media on the artist's profilepage, see tour information, upload images, and communicate with otherfans.
Facebook is rumored to have met with representatives of all fourmajor labels to discuss the effort, and apparently plans to expand theprogram rapidly by implementing targeted marketing, as well as a musicsales widgets
that would compete with iTunes by letting bands sell music directlyfrom their Facebook pages, the way they already can on MySpace.
It's officially time for MySpace to get worried; its status as thetop social network for music could be in jeopardy. As for Apple, itcan rest easier, for the moment anyway, because fans have beenresistant to purchasing music on social networks... so far.
