Microsoft, RIM Take Aim At iTunes

With Apple's iTunes Music Store dominating digital music sales, rival music distributors haven't been able to keep up. But that doesn't mean they can't try.

Both RIM and Microsoft are close to launching their own digital music services to combat Apple's domination.

In a deal with British media delivery company 7digital, RIM plans to launch its Playbook tablet with its own music store. The move would bring 7digital's library of 13 million songs to Playbook owners.

The Playbook, announced in Sept. 2010 is the first tablet from RIM, and offers significant compatibility with RIM's Blackberry smartphones.

Not to be left out, Microsoft is also launching its own music service. Codenamed Ventura the service is rumored to be a replacement to Microsoft's Zune music service, which has failed to make much of a dent in Apple's market share. Developed by Microsoft's Entertainment and Devices, little is currently known about it.

But RIM and Microsoft aren't alone in their attempts against Apple. Google, too, is planning its own music store, according to some reports. Motorola CEO Sanjay Jha said in February that a Google Music service may also be on the horizon. If you look at Google Mobile services today, there's a video service, there's a music service-- that is, there will be a music service, Jha said during keynote at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.

Hints of the service have been spotted in builds of Android Honeycomb as well. According to developers, an app found within Honeycomb makes it possible to remotely synching stored music. The claim, which was verified by other developers, points to a cloud-based music service from Google.

Apple's market dominance is substantial. According to numbers issued by NPD last fall, Apple's iTunes is responsible for over sixty percent of online music purchases. The company's largest competitor, Amazon, didn't come close, making up only thirteen percent of the market. Estimates of Apple's digital music market share are as high as 90 percent, according to some record label executives.

To contact the reporter responsible for this story call (646) 461 7294 or email r.bilton@ibtimes.com.