Indies Out, Majors In at eMusic

EMUSIC IN-N-OUT: Indie labels Merge, Beggars Banquet and Domino have pulled their music from eMusic just as the service prepares to add more than 250k titles from UMG, as well as new releases from Sony Music and Warner Music Group, which will go live tomorrow (11/18), with the balance rolled out over the next few weeks. The three indie labels ankled, citing the fact that their terms have become unfavorable with the addition of the three major music groups. eMusic CEO Adam Klein addressed the issue on the company’s website: “We are treating all labels equally and therefore we believe fairly. We remain committed to the unique voice we have cultivated on the eMusic site, and to highlighting the music that inspires us, whether it’s sold four or 4 million copies, regardless of what label has released it. We look forward to working with all of our label partners—new and existing—and to creating a service that benefits them, their artists and our members.” (11/17p)