Sony BMG plans online subscription service

Sony BMG is planning to jump onto the online music subscription service bandwagon shortly-- this was revealed by Sony BMG Music Entertainment CEO, Rolf Schmidt Holtz, in an interview with German-language newspaper, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung.

Holtz said the subscription service would allow customers unlimited access to Sony BMG's rich and varied music library, besides being compatible with a host of digital music players -- including Apple's ubiquitous iPod. The service would likely come for a flat-rate monthly fee of around 6 to 8 euros, the equivalent of about 9 to 12 US dollars.

It would definitely be subscription-based, Holtz said, with the possibility of having music that expires if not renewed. The catch being: music that expires requires DRM (Digital Rights Management) and there is no universal DRM scheme that works on both Apple and non-Apple devices yet.

Holtz also told that he believes the venture will pay off, provided there are enough takers for it. Though he acknowledged that it would become all the more attractive if big music labels were to join in. For this purpose, he said Sony BMG is in talks with other labels. It was also possible that the mobile phone operators may be brought on board to allow users download songs onto their mobile phones.

Meanwhile, Holtz did not give any timeline for the launch of this upcoming service.