iMesh downloans beta
p2p news / p2pnet: Former indie p2p site iMesh is about to join the ranks of corporate music sites hoping to cash in on the so far non-existent corporate online music biz with music rentals, p2pnet has been told.
Although it’ll have a ‘free’ non-major label component and an à la carte service, it’ll be banking on downloans locked by the RIAA’s Audible Magic DRM (Digital Restrictions Management), say normally reliable sources.
iMesh was sued for copyright infringement by the Big Four record label cartel’s RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America), eventually setttling for $4.1 million.
The new beta iMesh service will launch next week and will probably feature a 30-day AOL-type money-back-if-you-don’t-like-it scheme, we’re told.
Now run by ex-Sony Music boss Robert Summer, in July iMesh signed a deal with Sony BMG and was reportedly close to an arrangement with Universal Music Group.
With corporate music downloans, punters pay a monthly fee and as long as the money keeps coming in, they can access digital tracks offered by the service. As soon as payments stop, so does the service and users’ music libraries and collections are no more.
"Copyright issues are of great concern to iMesh," says the site. "In an effort to create and promote a legal file sharing Internet environment, we are entering into distribution agreements with copyright holders."
It may have been the first ex-indie p2p company to publicly state this view, but it’s not alone.
Following the recent RIAA Cease & Desist letters to major operators, the commercial p2p business is currently in total disarray as company owners scramble to find a way to survive.
The RIAA C&D missiles were fired soon after the US Supreme Court Grokster v MGM ruling.
As the EFF (Electronic Frontier Association), which represented Morpheus owner StreamCast Networks said before the decison was announced, "Twenty-eight of the world’s largest entertainment companies brought the lawsuit against the makers of the Morpheus, Grokster, and KaZaA software products, aiming to set a precedent to use against other technology companies (P2P and otherwise)."
The Supremes ruled the makers of p2p file sharing applications can be held liable if users of their software download copyrighted works, establishing secondary liability for copyright infringement.
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See:-
iMesh – Exit Grokster, enter iMesh?, June 27, 2005
RIAA’s Audible Magic – Audible Magic’s ’silver bullet’, July 13, 2004
October 20th, 2005 at 5:29 pm
I hate “reliable source” or “sources close to the information.”
October 20th, 2005 at 7:37 pm
say normally reliable sources. <—- hmmmm I think they failed this time Jon
October 20th, 2005 at 8:13 pm
Why do you think they failed?
Cheers!
October 20th, 2005 at 9:02 pm
It has also been reported thier subscription service will be $10 a month .
But when will they offer other content like games ,software and video .
Another p2p pay service that is already up and running is planing to launch games within weeks .
October 21st, 2005 at 12:03 am
I got my copy from the iMesh server weeks ago!!!! it’s been in the beta stages for ages
October 25th, 2005 at 12:03 pm
Try it again today. You’ll be pleasantly surprised.