Got beef with Amazon? Apparently, so do big-time record labels.
The online retailer was due for a meeting today in New York with music label executives about its controversial cloud music storage service.
The digital locker Cloud Drive was launched in March and allows anyone to upload and back up their music to Amazon’s servers. Customers can access the songs on mobile phones and other devices, as well as store photos and documents.
Now for the dispute: Music labels believe Amazon should only be selling digital downloads and needs to pay for licensing rights to stream music to consumers. Amazon obviously doesn’t agree.
In a letter obtained by Reuters, Amazon said it does not need a license for the service because it is for general online storage. It compared the player to Microsoft’s Windows Media Player. The music team also said the player has helped to boost sales of digital songs in its MP3 store.
Whether illegal or legal, it’s likely that Amazon won’t be alone in the music locker endeavor. Google and Apple are rumored to launch similar services sometime. We’ll see how that goes over with the labels.
More on Techland:
What Amazon’s Cloud Drive Means for You