Apple acquired Lala service late last year and shut down its service at the end of May. The plan for Apple was to utilize Lala services and expertise in order to build a new cloud-based iTunes service. However things are not progressing fast according to a CNET report. “Apple is telling executives at the four top labels that if Apple does offer any cloud-music features within the next few months, the features will likely be ‘modest in scope’ and not offer the broad kind of cloud services that Apple has previously spoken about in meetings with the labels, such as storing the music libraries of iTunes users on its servers, sources told CNET. They added that Apple still hasn’t obtained the licenses needed to store and distribute music this way,” the report said. This confirms early July reports saying that Apple still hasn’t obtained licenses from music labels. A main cause for the delay might be that Apple is not clear yet on how the new service will work and as a result Lala people were working on a new video feature instead on audio delivery. “Most of the time since the acquisition, the Lala team has worked on an undisclosed video feature instead of a music offering, and that Apple managers, even Eddy Cue, who runs Apple’s Internet division and headed iTunes for years, took a long time to specify what he wanted from the Lala guys,” the report said. (The new video feature might be a new codec first reported last month).
In addition the report brings some more information about the role of Lala personnel when moved to Apple indicating that some of Lala management people are not happy. “In negotiations, Apple promised Lala executives that they would receive ‘key positions helping shape music strategy for the iTunes Store,’ The Wall Street Journal reported soon after the acquisition became public. At the time, some label managers questioned whether Lala’s outspoken management, especially press-friendly Nguyen, would fit in at Apple, famous for fostering an atmosphere of absolute secrecy. The situation with the former Lala management team is hazier now than ever. Two music industry sources said Monday that one of Lala’s four founding members, someone who moved to Apple after the acquisition, has recently left the company,” the report said.
While Apple is moving at a slow pace, reports say that Google is working on deals with music labels for the new service, Google Music. “The search engine has recently hired Elizabeth Moody, an attorney with deep experience negotiating digital-music deals. Record executives expect Moody will help cut the first cloud-music licensing agreement. Google has told music executives that it wants to launch a music service this year,” the report said.
