Business Insider has a pair of articles on Google's plans to launch its own music service, which make fascinating reading. The first claims that Google was 'close' to buying Spotify or Rhapsody, but that the plans were axed due to 'internal fighting' between the three different groups involved in Google's music plans. The second report says that Google is now focusing on the cloud locker element of its service, leaving an all-you-can-eat subscription element for later. It also suggests that the company is “preparing to pay the record labels millions of dollars so they'll sign off on it”. However, it makes it clear that negotiations have NOT begun in earnest with publishers over the cloud service. There is, it should be noted, little information (or direct quotes) to indicate the reliability of these reports, although neither rumour is entirely new.
