Google’s attempt to compete in the music sales business fell short of expectations when it launched the cloud-only Music Beta without support from the record labels, but Android head Andy Rubin expressed confidence that Google is getting close, in his remarks at the AsiaD conference in Hong Kong. Rubin says that Google’s version “will have a little twist” and that “it won’t just be selling 99-cent tracks.” Google is trailing Apple and Amazon, which already sell music and offer cloud music lockers.
Google music store coming soon with a ‘twist,’ says Andy Rubin
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Google has accused the labels of being unreasonable in the past, but Rubin is taking a more diplomatic approach this time around — he says that Google has been misunderstood as just a search company (they’re much more than that now). Still, as the Wall Street Journal reported, it doesn’t sound like any of the major labels are close to striking a deal except for EMI Group, the smallest of the bunch. Hopefully that means Google’s twist — whatever it is — is big enough for consumers to make the record companies uncomfortable. Apple and Amazon are waiting.
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