US startup MusicBank is attempting to legitimise the popular, but controversial, trend of storing music on the web.
Listeners can either download the music or listen to it online.
Essentially what MusicBank is offering is an online storage service. It would be inconvenient for users to have to upload whole CDs of music to the MusicBank server, so the company will retain single copies of CDs which users can then play on request. In theory, online storage should give consumers the chance to sample their music collection anywhere and anytime they can access the net. Users could put together compilations of their favourite tracks, ready to play at any time. As part of the deal, BMG has made sure that MusicBank will pay a royalty each time a track is played or downloaded.