June 7th, 2006
Billy Bragg Walks Away From MySpace
Musician Billy Bragg has abandoned MySpace, a harsh reminder that MySpace doesn’t actually own ANY of its content, despite the backhanded efforts of News Corp’s legal department:
Bragg has deleted his tunes from his MySpace.com page, which offers this explanation: “SORRY THERE’S NO MUSIC,” because “once an artist posts up any content (including songs), it then belongs to My Space (AKA Rupert Murdoch) and they can do what they want with it, throughout the world without paying the artist.”
The troublesome fine print informs users that by posting any content, “you hereby grant to MySpace.com a non-exclusive, fully-paid and royalty-free, worldwide license (with the right to sublicense through unlimited levels of sublicensees) to use, copy, modify, adapt, translate, publicly perform, publicly display, store, reproduce, transmit, and distribute such Content on and through the Services.”
Ouch — News Corp is showing its 1.0 roots.
And of all the musicians to piss off.
I really do wish it was still the IPO days — when MySpace would have gone public — and we could now enjoy wtching the stock on its way down.
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