In Switch to MP3, Wal-Mart Loses Sony BMG, Warner Songs

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on April 9, 2008 - 8:54am.

Los Angeles - Following the switch to MP3 format at retail giant Wal-Mart's digital music store, songs from artists on major labels Sony (NYSE: SNE) BMG and Warner Music (NYSE: WMG) have disappeared from the site, Digital Music News reported. Wal-Mart announced last August that it would migrate from Windows Media Audio to the unprotected MP3 format, saying at the time that EMI and Universal Music were on board.

But the Wal-Mart MP3 store is currently void of tracks from popular artists including Madonna, Britney Spears and Michael Jackson -- or any other artists on Sony BMG or Warner Music -- save for tracks on compilations or karaoke versions.

The new incarnation of Wal-Mart's digital music store also only supports Microsoft's Internet Explorer browser.

A source close to the situation told Digital Music News that the labels were to blame, "for demanding onerous concessions in exchange for DRM-free licensing approvals."