Online music choices grow

By Kate Holton

LONDON (Reuters) - Whether at home, in the car or at his desk, designer Ben Robinson is surrounded by his favorite music -- via his iPod or a Web jukebox like Pandora. Like other fans all over the world, Robinson, 26, is benefiting from the music industry's drive to reinvent itself in the digital age.

Listeners now have many new ways to buy music online -- from subscription and set-your-own price to advertising-supported.

And, of course, there is Apple's (AAPL.O: Quote, Profile, Research) established online giant -- iTunes.

Since it has become so easy to get music online, Robinson, for one, said he is buying twice as much as he used to. And he is also going to more gigs -- all good news for an industry that has struggled with CD sales falling at an alarming rate.

Soon there may be an even wider array of choices. Ben Cardew, chief reporter of Music Week magazine, sees the industry sampling lots of new ways to sell tunes to meet demand, which he says is stronger than ever.

"Wherever you go, people are listening to iPods, music is on adverts and the live scene is doing incredibly well. The demand is absolutely there," Cardew said. "(There are) so many great new ideas -- from ad-funded to subscription and giving away your album with a newspaper."

The subject of selling music made the headlines recently after the acclaimed rock band Radiohead sold its new album as a digital download at its Web site for as much or as little as fans wanted to pay (www.inrainbows.com/Store/index3.htm).

Pop star Prince gave his latest album away free with a newspaper in Britain, generating huge publicity for a tour.