Stefan Mileschin

We've been hearing rumblings about Google's plans for a Spotify-killer for what seems like forever now. More recently, there's been word that the company's YouTube brand is also getting set set to enter the space, albeit with some overlap from a Google-branded effort. Fortune spoke to some anonymous-type folks in the record industry who confirmed the latter, adding that the service is set to launch this year. The offering will apparently give users some free streaming, with additional features being made available for a subscription fee. The site reached out to YouTube, who offered the following bit of hopeful non-commitment:

While we don't comment on rumor or speculation, there are some content creators that think they would benefit from a subscription revenue stream in addition to ads, so we're looking at that.

So, you know, stay tuned.

http://www.engadget.com/2013/03/05/youtube-music/