Los Angeles - Major label Sony (NYSE: SNE) BMG and Norwegian online music store Platekompaniet have complained to Google, after Google AdWords ads for their companies appeared on IsoHunt, one of the world's largest BitTorrent file-sharing network tracker sites, TorrentFreak reported. The ads weren't reportedly served directly by Google, but rather through Google AdWords reseller Ask.com.

San Francisco - Three of the four major record labels have signed on to back Choruss, an independent nonprofit organization that would collect and distribute monies paid by universities and Internet service providers for blanket digital music licenses, Wired.com reported, citing an industry source.

New York - Qtrax, an ad-supported digital music service, announced on Thursday that it has signed a deal to license major record label Sony (NYSE: SNE) BMG's catalog for its offering. Qtrax has also licensed labels EMI and Universal, as well as the major music publishers, for its peer-to-peer-based, ad-supported free song download service.

Jacksonville, Fla. - Major record label Sony BMG announced on Wednesday that it has partnered with grocery store chain Winn-Dixie, to offer digital album download cards at its 521 retail grocery locations in the Southeast. The $12.99 Platinum MusicPass cards include collectible images, and in addition to providing a code to download an album in the MP3 format, may also include special bonus content.

London - U.K.-based digital entertainment retailer Play.com announced that it has now signed all four major labels to provide content for its store, Billboard reports. The store launched in February with licenses from EMI and independents, but has now added Sony BMG, Warner Music and Universal Music tracks to its catalog -- which now offers over three million DRM-free songs.

Stockholm, Sweden - Spotify, the Sweden-based developer of an ad-supported digital music service, on Tuesday announced its launch with the signing of licensing deals with all four major record labels, as well as independent labels represented by Merlin and The Orchard.

New York - Sony Corp. (NYSE: SNE) said on Thursday that it has completed its $1.2 billion purchase of Bertelsmann's 50% stake in their Sony BMG record label joint venture, ending the partnership the companies embarked on back in 2004. The company will now be known as Sony Music Entertainment, and will account for about 23% of U.S. album sales, second to Universal Music.

Los Angeles - The four major record labels, along with leading U.S. retailers and memory card maker SanDisk on Monday introduced a new music format, where microSD cards will come pre-loaded with DRM-free MP3 albums from top artists. The "slotMusic" cards will be playable in mobile phones and MP3 players that support microSD cards -- which excludes Apple's (NASD: AAPL) iPod -- as well as on any computer with a USB port and a number of in-car systems.

Brussels - The European Commission has cleared Sony's (NYSE: SNE) proposed $1.2 billion acquisition of Bertelsmann's 50% stake in their joint record label venture, Sony BMG, concluding that "the transaction would not significantly impede effective competition." The Commission said it did not find concern with Sony BMG and Sony/ATV's potential control of joint licensing of publishing and recording rights to online music retailers, nor with Sony's consumer electronics business, which makes music-related devices like MP3 players and mobile phones.

London - U.K.-based digital music retailer 7digital on Tuesday announced a new agreement with Sony BMG to sell songs in the DRM-free MP3 format, making the retailer's entire 4-million-track catalog now available as MP3s. Sony BMG tracks previously purchased from 7digital in the WMA format will be upgraded to MP3 for free. To celebrate its milestone of having an all-MP3 catalog, 7digital is offering two MP3 albums for free to all users, while other selected albums will be priced at just $3.57.

New York - Major record label Sony BMG's Commercial Music Group on Tuesday announced the launch of MovieTunes, a new service that helps filmmakers choose music for their films. The site lets filmmakers submit specific criteria pertaining to their needs, at which point a Sony BMG "music expert" will provide assistance in selecting songs from the Sony BMG archive that fit their budget parameters.

Los Angeles - Wolfgang's Vault, a site that offers downloads of vintage concerts and other memorabilia once owned by legendary concert promoter Bill Graham, has reached a tentative settlement with rock bands Santana and the Doors, and a number of record labels that sued the site for copyright infringement, Billboard reports.

London - Telefonica's (NYSE: TEF) O2 wireless network in the U.K. on Thursday announced the launch of My Play, a mobile music store joint venture with major label Sony BMG. The store, powered by Momac's GoMedia publishing platform, will offer videos, full-track downloads and ringtones. In addition to being available from the O2 Active portal, consumers will also be able to access the My Play store by clicking on artist micro-sites.

New York - Sony BMG's Epic Records has announced a music video competition collaboration with Massify.com, an online social network of aspiring filmmakers. The contest will select filmmakers and actors from the network to work with RSA Films to produce the official music video for a song by Epic roster band Low vs Diamond.

*A clarification has been added to this story.

New York - Sony (NYSE: SNE) announced on Tuesday that it has agreed to buy Bertelsmann's 50% stake in their four-year-old major record label joint venture Sony BMG, in a deal valued at $1.2 billion. "After a careful and thorough review, we made the strategic decision to sell our investment in this joint venture to Sony, a step that we believe will benefit the stakeholders of both our companies," said Bertelsmann chairman and CEO Hartmut Ostrowski.