Of course, Janus Friis and Niklas Zennstrom didn’t just develop Skype – they were also behind P2P client Kazaa. So raise an eyebrow at the news that they are now developing a subscription-based streaming music service called Rdio, which will be browser-based and also accessible from mobile handsets.”We have watched many ad-supported music businesses come and go,” says Friis, in an interview with Bloomberg. “We felt the time was right to revisit this space, this time with a compelling offering and a sustainable subscription model.”No licensing deals have been signed yet, and there’s no details on pricing. “The idea is to create a subscription streaming service that’s between desktop and mobile,” says CEO Drew Larner. “For someone who’s interested on a subscription basis, the notion of ownership becomes less important than the idea of streaming on- demand.”The US is shaping up as an intriguing battle next year between Spotify, MySpace Music, Pandora, Rdio and their streaming rivals. And what’s interesting is the shift towards subscription again…
Tools: platforms to help you reach new audiences
Tools: Kaiber
In the year or so since its launch, AI startup Kaiber has been making waves,…