Bundles of joy

After partnering with Sky last month to create a music download service, Universal’s Rob Wells predicted that “bundling it in with their broadband or set-top box subscription will be an inevitability.” But what of Playlouder MSP, the independent that for five years has been pioneering the notion of licensed filesharing bundled with ISP subscriptions? Since Universal’s deal with Sky was announced, news sources have speculated that Sky’s most significant rival – Virgin Media – is keen to up the ante. Well placed industry sources confirm that Virgin has been doing the rounds of the major labels lately with some kind of digital music offering. But whether this will be a licensed file sharing service a la Playlouder remains unclear. Virgin themselves have merely said they are looking at various ways of integrating digital music into their offering.As Virgin Media’s current music download offering is limited to a rather dated 79p download store powered by Nokia/Loudeye/OD2, there’s certainly a great deal of room for innovation. But which model and which provider could give Virgin the kick it needs? Blogs and industry insiders alike have ventured forth to identify Playlouder MSP, the London-based “media service provider” that aims to integrate peer-to peer [...]