EMI Drops Lawsuit, Partners With Grooveshark

(UPDATED) Digital music service Grooveshark has signed a deal with EMI Records and Publishing that both ends the lawsuit from the major label group and licenses its content.

In a statement, a company spokesperson said that it "hopes this will set a precedent for the industry to be more innovative and less litigious in the digital music space".  Dubbing themselves “The People’s Music Service,” Grooveshark has a "focus in helping signed and unsigned artists build and monetize their careers, while making on-demand streaming music easy and legal for the public to access". 

Grooveshark  offers the  ability  to  stream  songs  free  from  selection of 15 million tracks. Now download or registration is required..  The basic service is supported by online advertising and a $3 per month premium service eliminates the ads.   The site was  recently named the best way to listen to music on the web by Rolling Stone, and just passed one million registered users.

The  Grooveshark  platform  was  created  by  a  group  of  music  enthusiasts  from  the University of Florida.