In the past 5 years I have probably purchased about 5 CD’s that were not on sale or used . A couple weren’t even for me. I have never purchased an mp3 from iTunes or any other such service. In fact, I just signed up for an iTunes account today so I could get album artwork. Most days I tend to listen to music online, from Shoutcast, iMeem, Pandora, Grooveshark and the likes. Are we moving away from owning the songs we listen to?

Zune Pass

The Zune Pass (from Microsoft) allows users to pay $14.99 and download as much music as they want, and to keep 10 of those songs. The rest can be used as long as the monthly subscription is paid for. $14.99 is about the cost of a new CD, if I’m not mistaken. Sure, at $1.50 per purchased song it’s more expensive than most songs on iTunes but this allows the downloading of a plethora of music, that can be listened to on a computer or mp3 player. Is there a need to possess songs? Overall, this isn’t a bad idea.

Lala

For people who don’t mind their music collection being in the cloud, there’s Lala.com. For a mere 10 cents users can buy the listening rights to a song, and for 79 cents more they can own the mp3. In addition, all the mp3’s users DO own can be matched with the site’s catalogue, to allow the listening of those songs from Lala’s interface. Users can listen to songs and albums ONE time, before deciding if they want to buy. Check out some CD’s I uploaded and can now access online (if nothing shows up below, I have most likely stopped using Lala):

To make matters even sweeter, Lala will soon be releasing an iPhone app that will connect users to their online music library. Uh oh! An iPhone app that could make iTunes a much less attractive option for many people.

imeem, Pandora, Grooveshark

While imeem also allows users to upload mp3’s, the process is far less user-friendly and convenient than Lala’s. Unlike many other music streaming sites, however, imeem lets users select specific songs and rewind/fast forward. Although Pandora does a great job of predicting music I’ll enjoy, the inability to CHOOSE my songs gets annoying. Grooveshark (and its recently updated interface) really does have pretty much any song available. Contrary to Pandora, it allows for rewinding/fast forwarding and also lets users upload songs. When I tried to do so, however, the applet didn’t recognize my external hard drive. Fail. Each site definitely has its uses, though.

Recording Streaming Radio

While I can not condone nor encourage the recording of streaming radio stations, there are ways to do so. Streamripper, Snowtape and Replay Media Catcher are options that exist, for example. This ability, coupled with the options that let users listen to music for free online (now made easier by Google’s new music search function) very well could lead to the death and destruction of the mp3. I think a healthy dose of both makes sense. In the end, there may be enough people on both sides of the aisle to make the online vs mp3 debate a moot point. I’ll personally take advantage of any and all options that let me hear music convenently.