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Yahoo Music

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Yahoo Music
Type of site
Internet radio, digital music store, music streaming service, media player software
Available inMultilingual
CommercialYes
RegistrationOptional (required for most)
Current statusDefunct (merged into Yahoo! Chat Yahoo!)
Previous Yahoo! Music logo used until 2013

Yahoo Music was a brand under which Yahoo provided music services including Internet radio, a digital music store, music streaming service, media player software, and original programming. Yahoo Music was sold to Rhapsody in early 2008.[1][2]

Products

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Yahoo Music Radio

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In June 2001, after the bursting of the dot-com bubble, Yahoo acquired LAUNCH Media, which was facing financial difficulty, for $12 million.[3][4][5] In addition to a website with music news and videos, it provided an Internet radio service that allowed users to create personalized Internet radio stations by rating songs selected by a recommender system. Users were also able to listen to music from 150 preset Internet radio stations. The service offered both an advertising supported free version and a subscription fee-based premium version.[6] At the time of the acquisition by Yahoo, the service had 7.4 million users.[7]

In December 2008, the service was integrated into CBS Radio due to a rise in royalty rates, with CBS taking full control of the service, including advertising and sales and adding compatibility with Firefox and Safari.[8][9][10][11]

The service was integrated with iHeartRadio in June 2012, providing listeners exclusive access to music events such as the iHeartRadio Music Festival.[12] The service was shut down in early 2014 without any announcement.

Musicmatch Jukebox

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Musicmatch was a media player software that also operated an internet radio service, which allowed users choose the artist they want to listen to but not the song.[13] MusicMatch Jukebox was launched in 1997[14] and was bundled with the iPod Classic as its music manager until the introduction of iTunes for Microsoft Windows in 2003.[15] In September 2003, the company launched a digital music store with 200,000 songs available.[16][17] It had a partnership with Dell to promote the service and software.[18]

On September 14, 2004, Yahoo acquired Musicmatch Jukebox for $160 million. However, the service was not integrated well, instead stagnating.[19] It was shut down on August 31, 2007.[20]

Yahoo Music Unlimited

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Yahoo Music Unlimited
Launch dateMay 10, 2005; 21 years ago (2005-05-10)
DiscontinuedSeptember 30, 2008; 17 years ago (2008-09-30)
Platform(s)Windows: XP, Vista
Pricing modelSubscription business model

In May 2005, Yahoo Music launched Yahoo Music Unlimited, a music streaming service and digital music store.[21][22][23][24][25] Users paid a subscription fee to access a library of over two million songs which could be either streamed or downloaded as DRM-protected Windows Media Audio files and played from a computer in near CD quality sound. Subscribers could also download songs for transfer to CD or supported portable devices with an additional per-song payment. Yahoo Music Jukebox was the software used for the service. The service required an active Internet connection. It was discontinued on September 30, 2008.[26][27] The service was praised for its music quality, interface, and cheaper price than competitors.[28][29]

Yahoo Music Jukebox

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Yahoo Music Jukebox
Other namesYahoo Music Engine
DeveloperYahoo
Release2005; 21 years ago (2005)
Final release
2.2.2.058 / February 6, 2008; 18 years ago (2008-02-06)
Operating systemWindows 98, Windows ME, Windows 2000, Windows XP, Windows Vista
TypeMedia player
Music streaming service
Online radio
LicenseProprietary
Websitemusic.yahoo.com/jukebox

Yahoo Music Jukebox, formerly known as Yahoo Music Engine, was a freeware media player software released by Yahoo in 2005 to compete with iTunes and Rhapsody in the digital music market.[30][31][32][33][34]

References

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  1. ↑ Schroeder, Stan (February 4, 2008). "Yahoo Kills Yahoo Music Unlimited, Signs Deal With Rhapsody". Mashable. Archived from the original on March 6, 2021. Retrieved June 9, 2025.
  2. ↑ Schroeder, Stan (July 3, 2008). "With the closing of Yahoo's music download store, old DRM'd songs now useless". TechCrunch. Archived from the original on January 8, 2026. Retrieved June 9, 2025.
  3. ↑ "Yahoo Expands Music Portfolio With Deal to Buy Launch Media". The Wall Street Journal. June 28, 2001. Archived from the original on December 14, 2023. Retrieved December 18, 2023.
  4. ↑ Hu, Jim. "Yahoo thinks entertainment with Launch buy". CNET. Archived from the original on December 18, 2023. Retrieved December 18, 2023.
  5. ↑ King, Brad (June 28, 2001). "Yahoo Launches Into Web Music". Wired. Archived from the original on December 14, 2023. Retrieved December 18, 2023.
  6. ↑ Williams, Martyn (January 29, 2003). "Report: Yahoo to launch subscription music service". Computerworld. Archived from the original on December 14, 2023. Retrieved December 18, 2023.
  7. ↑ Flynn, Laurie J. (June 29, 2001). "Internet: Yahoo Buys A Music Service". The New York Times. Archived from the original on December 14, 2023. Retrieved December 18, 2023.
  8. ↑ Liedtke, Michael (December 3, 2008). "Rising royalties send Yahoo's Launchcast to CBS". NBC News. Archived from the original on December 14, 2023.
  9. ↑ Reisinger, Don (December 3, 2008). "Yahoo hands Launchcast to CBS Radio". CNET. Archived from the original on December 14, 2023. Retrieved December 18, 2023.
  10. ↑ Bachman, Katy (December 3, 2008). "CBS to Power Yahoo's LaunchCast". AdWeek. Archived from the original on December 14, 2023. Retrieved December 18, 2023.
  11. ↑ Arrington, Michael (December 3, 2008). "Yahoo To Relaunch Launchcast Next Year With CBS Radio". TechCrunch. Archived from the original on December 14, 2023. Retrieved December 18, 2023.
  12. ↑ Gardner, Eriq (June 27, 2012). "Yahoo and Clear Channel Forge Digital Radio Partnership". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on December 14, 2023. Retrieved December 18, 2023.
  13. ↑ Hansell, Saul (March 3, 2003). "E-Music Sites Settle on Prices. It's a Start". The New York Times. Archived from the original on July 11, 2025. Retrieved June 9, 2025.
  14. ↑ "MusicMatch grooves to paid tunes". CNET. Archived from the original on January 24, 2025. Retrieved June 9, 2025.
  15. ↑ Griffith, Eric (May 10, 2022). "A Visual History of the Apple iPod". PCMag. Archived from the original on April 17, 2024. Retrieved June 9, 2025.
  16. ↑ "MusicMatch Bows Download Store". Billboard. September 29, 2003. Archived from the original on January 23, 2025. Retrieved June 9, 2025.
  17. ↑ Smith, Tony (September 29, 2003). "Musicmatch iTunes-style service goes live". The Register. Archived from the original on April 22, 2025. Retrieved June 9, 2025.
  18. ↑ Frauenheim, Ed (October 27, 2003). "Dell unveils MP3 player". CNET. Archived from the original on January 23, 2025. Retrieved June 9, 2025.
  19. ↑ Van Buskirk, Eliot (July 11, 2007). "Why Did Yahoo Pay $160 Million for Musicmatch?". Wired. Archived from the original on December 18, 2023. Retrieved December 18, 2023.
  20. ↑ Lendino, Jamie (July 9, 2007). "Yahoo Ends Musicmatch Service". AdWeek. Archived from the original on January 23, 2025. Retrieved June 9, 2025.
  21. ↑ "Yahoo! Soft Launches New Music Service". Billboard. May 10, 2005. Archived from the original on December 14, 2023. Retrieved December 18, 2023.
  22. ↑ Bangeman, Eric (May 11, 2005). "Yahoo enters digital music fray". Ars Technica. Archived from the original on December 14, 2023. Retrieved December 18, 2023.
  23. ↑ Healey, Jon (May 11, 2005). "Yahoo Offers Subscription Service for Online Music". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on December 14, 2023. Retrieved December 18, 2023.
  24. ↑ Contreras, Felix (May 12, 2005). "Yahoo Announces Music Download Service". NPR. Archived from the original on December 14, 2023. Retrieved December 18, 2023.
  25. ↑ Kim, James (August 18, 2005). "Yahoo Music Unlimited officially live". CNET. Archived from the original on December 14, 2023. Retrieved December 18, 2023.
  26. ↑ "Yahoo Not Only Shutting Music Store, But Orphaning DRM Buyers". CBS News. July 27, 2008. Archived from the original on December 14, 2023. Retrieved December 18, 2023.
  27. ↑ Sorrel, Charlie (July 25, 2008). "So Long, And Thanks for All the Cash: Yahoo Shuts Down Music Store and DRM Servers". Wired. Archived from the original on December 14, 2023. Retrieved December 18, 2023.
  28. ↑ Meier, Josh (May 28, 2005). "Software Review: Yahoo Music Unlimited!". Ars Technica. Archived from the original on December 14, 2023. Retrieved December 18, 2023.
  29. ↑ Dreier, Troy (February 21, 2007). "Yahoo! Music Unlimited". PCMag. Archived from the original on December 14, 2023. Retrieved December 18, 2023.
  30. ↑ Borland, John (September 14, 2004). "Yahoo's long and winding music road". CNET. Archived from the original on January 20, 2025. Retrieved June 9, 2025.
  31. ↑ Olsen, Stefanie (May 5, 2005). "Yahoo developing an audio search engine". ZDNet. CNET Networks.
  32. ↑ Hansell, Saul (August 4, 2005). "Yahoo Introduces Search Service for Music". The New York Times. Archived from the original on January 20, 2025. Retrieved June 9, 2025.
  33. ↑ "Rogers Named Yahoo! Music GM". Billboard. February 22, 2007. Archived from the original on January 29, 2022. Retrieved June 9, 2025.
  34. ↑ Hu, Jim (February 4, 2004). "Yahoo composing music download plan". CNET. Archived from the original on February 4, 2026. Retrieved June 9, 2025.
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