EMI was the only major label to sign a licensing agreement with controversial streaming music service Grooveshark, but that deal is dead now. CNET reports that the label pulled out, claiming in court documents that Grooveshark has failed to meet the terms of the agreement. That’s not how Grooveshark is spinning it, though: “Grooveshark was recently forced to make the difficult decision to part ways with EMI due to EMI’s currently unsustainable streaming rates and EMI’s pending merger with Universal Music Group, which we consider monopolistic and in violation of antitrust laws,” says its statement, which also claims Grooveshark has paid more than $2.6m to the label so far. EMI’s publishing division is already suing Grooveshark for breach of contract. The news came as Grooveshark announced a new ‘Video Engagement Platform’ to show video ads to users. The idea being that people watch a 15-60 second video ad for an artist, and then get four hours of ad-free music. Grooveshark’s pariah status means many artists will steer well clear, though.
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Tools: Kaiber
In the year or so since its launch, AI startup Kaiber has been making waves,…