Sony joins We7 to make music free

We7, a free, advertising-supported online music service backed by Peter Gabriel, has become the first to claim the support of a major label, after Sony BMG, home to Mark Ronson, Bruce Springsteen and the Hoosiers, pledged to license its catalogue of more than 250,000 tracks to the company's new online music streaming service. (...)

Gabriel, who has consistently been in the vanguard of the digital music business and previously had a hand in launching early download business OD2, said: "The digital revolution has produced exciting and extraordinary opportunities in the music business, even though it has been largely written off by many. We7 is a model that will supply free music to the consumer and still provide a stream of revenue to musicians and content owners." (...)