Source (click to view): The Telegraph UK ; Website http://www.muzu.tv/idMuzu aims to take on YouTube by offering thousands of hours of high-quality music videos and archive episodes of shows such as The Tube and Top of the Pops
Users can flick through thousands of hours of footage ranging from the latest music videos to exclusive clips and artists interviews. Archive episodes of shows such as The Tube and Top of the Pops, can be viewed online.
Muzu, which is based in Ireland, has signed deals with the so-called "big four" record labels – Universal, Sony BMG, Warner and EMI – as well as more than 7,000 independent labels. Users can create playlists of their favourite videos and clips, and share them with friends over the internet, or embed them on social-networking sites such as Facebook, Bebo, MySpace and Twitter.
"Whether you're an RnB diva or a hair metal rocker, Muzu's got the lot," said the company in a statement. I"Every imaginable genre is catered for.
And in a veiled dig at YouTube, which remains the most popular online video channel for finding and sharing clips of gigs, shows and music videos, Muzu said: "What’s more, because each video is officially licensed and approved by the artist, you won’t have to trawl through reams of grainy, homemade knock-offs or live footage of your favourite band via a crappy three-megapixel camera phone to find the video you want."
Google-owned YouTube has run in to hot water with record labels and artist groups over its revenue model. Earlier this year, Warner removed videos by its artists, such as Madonna and Green Day, from the YouTube site following a disagreement over payments. This week, Google and Warner reached a deal that will see the videos reinstated on YouTube in exchange for Warner taking the lion's share of advertising revenue from the videos.
In September, Google also settled a long-running dispute with the Performing Rights Society, which saw tens of thousands of videos return to YouTube after they had been removed in March. Google agreed to pay the PRS – which is responsible for paying out royalties to composers, publishers and songwriters – a lump sum of money, instead of the usual pay-per-view model.
