Pandora and Streaming Audio on the Pre Here to Stay

It has been a long, strange trip, but Internet Radio (specifically Pandora) has finally been pulled from the jaws of oblivion, and will live to fight another day.  

For the past two years, Pandora and other Internet Radio sites have been on the brink of destruction due to a campaign by SoundExchange to hike streaming fees to exceedingly high levels. Since the crusade first began, there have been numerous flirtations with a solution, but nothing substantial until now.

The meat of the deal centers on a compromise by SoundExchange to reduce the per-song-per-listener rates by 40-50%. In exchange, Pandora pay either 25% of its total US revenue, or the per-song-per-listener fee, depending on which is higher. As a result, Pandora will be implementing a 40-hour per month cap on users of its free subscription service (though supposedly this will affect about 10% of all subscribers). Should you reach this cap, you’ll need to pay a $0.99 fee for unlimited listening for the remainder of the month.  Users of Pandora’s paid subscription service, Pandora One, will be unaffected by this change.

It’s good to know that our favorite Internet streaming services will survive, and that the music industry is willing to make some compromises. What are your thoughts on the news? Let us know in the comments!