All MySpace members, over 120 million people, will get some free music and videos but have to put up with advertisements. Most of the content, which is being supplied by the four largest music labels - EMI, Universal Music, Sony BMG and Warner Music, is not free.

MySpace Music has started without Merlin, a music rights licensing agency that represents more than 12,000 independent labels including Epitaph, Koch Records and Tommy Boy - featuring artists such as Bad Religion, Rancid, Hatebreed, Sinead O\'Connor, RZA, Ringo Starr, Afrika Bambaataa, INXS and Ladysmith Black Mambazo.

Merlin claims that that, collectively, its members have more market share than EMI. Coments Charles Caldas, Merlin\'s chief executive:

\"We\'re extremely disappointed that they seem to misread their constituents so badly that they\'ve ignored what we think is their core, their sweet spot, when they launched. MySpace is a brand that\'s built its strength and built its power on the strength and diversity of the music it represents.\"