Many people have bemoaned the evolution of MTV, a shift that has taken it away from featuring music videos.
The latest MTV development may give them something to cheer about, though: the cable network has announced plans for an online store that will sell music and music videos.
URGE is set to debut in beta form on Wednesday, and should offer access to over 2 million song tracks.
URGE will only offer streaming videos for the time being, but should have video downloads available by year’s end.
MTV’s entry into the online music store competition should have prices comparable to those of the more established participants.
Individual tracks will be sold for 99 cents each, while whole albums should start at $9.95.
Unlimited downloads will supposedly also be available for the price of $9.95 per month, or for $14.95 with the added ability to transfer the songs to more than 100 supported players.
On that subject, URGE will come out of the box to link arm-in-arm with Microsoft’s Windows Media Player. More accurately, they will come out of the same box-URGE will come integrated into the newest version of the program, which will be released in the near future as an upgrade for Windows users.
In the meantime, it can be downloaded through the URGE or the Microsoft website.
URGE is viewed by some as a challenge to iTunes, and not just as a competitor for sales. With the former tied closely to PCs, and the latter’s obvious link to Apple, URGE may be in a position to become to preferred, or at least default, music source for certain individuals.
In addition, MTV’s brand name could give the start-up a solid boost as it fights for a share of the market.
It should be interesting to see how the network built on music fares as it returns to its roots.
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Doug is a staff writer for Murdok. Visit Murdok for the latest eBusiness news.
