Lala Launches New Purchasing Options, Widget

Music streaming/purchasing hub Lala has relaunched with a new "virtual ownership" model that allows the site to operate without the support of ads or monthly fees. The new version allows Lala users to stream any song or album once for free, after which the consumer will have the option of unlimited streams of the song for 10 cents or to purchase a DRM-free MP3 of the track for 89 cents. If you opt for a stream purchase but later decide to buy the MP3, the 10 cents will be credited to the purchase and the song will only cost 79 cents. Lala, which launched in 2006 as a CD trading site before segueing into online music distribution, has the support of all four majors and a boatload of indie labels. On the site, users upload their music libraries into Lala's own six million-song catalog, allowing for universal access to their own collections. The site also boasts a widget called Forecast, which allows users to put four songs on their blogs or Facebook pages, as well as share songs and play lists with other users.

Related Stories:
•YouTube Offering MP3 Downloads Through Videos
•Apple Wins Royalty Fight
•Muxtape Reborn as Launching Pad for Unknown Bands

• 
  MUSIC 100 Greatest Debut Albums
• 
  MOVIES 'Star Trek' Is Crazy Good
• 
  TV 10 Shows to Watch This Summer
• 
  POLITICS No Price Big Banks Can't Fix

Song Stories

“Help Me”

Joni Mitchell | 1974

Joni Mitchell wrote and recorded this song for her album Court and Spark, but she had to switch from her regular band to make the song sound exactly the way she wanted. "I had attempted to play my music with rock & roll players," she told Rolling Stone. "They’d laugh, 'Awww, isn't that cute? She's trying to teach us how to play.'" Mitchell switched to a jazz band, Tom Scott’s L.A. Express, and scored the biggest hit of her career in the process.

More Song Stories entries »

Twitter