Mountain View, Calif. - Google (NASD: GOOG) has launched a legal music search site in China with partner Top100.cn, also making an unspecified investment in the company, SINA.com reported.

The site is an alternative to the music search site offered by Baidu, China's largest search engine, which offers "deep links" to unauthorized song downloads.

Baidu is currently facing lawsuits in China over the search site from a number of copyright interests, including the IFPI.

Google's Music Onebox service, located at Google.cn/music, can be accessed only from China, and allows users to search for DRM-free MP3 files.

Advertising on the site is being sold by Top100, which shares revenue with its record label and publisher partners -- but not with Google -- a Google representative told Ars Technica.

Related Links:
http://snipurl.com/3byl6 (Ars Technica)

http://snipurl.com/3byn5 (PaidContent)

http://top100.cn

http://www.google.cn/music