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.

New York - Universal Music Group International said on Wednesday that it has licensed its catalog to the ad-supported, peer-to-peer based music service Qtrax in the territories of Europe, Asia/Pacific, South America and Africa, following a similar agreement reached for North America. Qtrax monetizes its service by selling sponsorships and advertising displayed during the search and download processes, and also provides the option to purchase music and related items throughout the Qtrax interface.

New York - Qtrax, an ad-supported peer-to-peer music download service, announced that it has added Jay Berman, former head of the record label lobbying groups the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), as co-chairman of its advisory board. "After assisting Qtrax over the past year, it is both satisfying and exciting to see its ambitious plans coming to fruition. Qtrax represents a paradigm shift for the music industry," said Berman.

New York - Users have reported experiencing problems with Qtrax, the free, legal peer-to-peer music download service that launched with licenses from the major labels this week, according to reports. Hypebot reported that searches for songs from many artists on major labels EMI and Universal Music returned notices that read "Coming Soon," while Wired.com said that tracks downloaded from the service initially would not play at all, but "are now playing just fine." A company representative told Wired.com, in reference to the gaps in its catalog, that "music is being added each and every day over the next few weeks in large batches."

New York - Qtrax, the developer of a free, ad-supported music file-sharing service, said in a note on its website that it plans to launch its service next Wednesday, on June 18. The company notably misfired with its first launch announcement, claiming it had landed licensing deals with all the majors at an industry conference in January before the deals had been signed. Qtrax recently signed a licensing deal with major label EMI, and has also secured licenses from labels Universal Music, Sony BMG, Beggars Group and TVT, as well as all of the major music publishers.

San Jose, Calif. - Qtrax, the developer of a free, ad-supported music download service, has announced a new licensing agreement with EMI Music, which joins Universal Music Group and the major music publishers in authorizing its tracks for distribution on the service. Qtrax fumbled when it announced in January that it has secured licenses from all the major labels before deals were signed, but has since announced deals with two of them.

San Jose, Calif. - Qtrax, the developer of a free, ad-supported music file-sharing service, has secured a deal with the last of the four major music publishers, Warner Music Group's (NYSE: WMG) Warner/Chappell, to license its repertoire for inclusion on the Qtrax service, Wired.com reports.

San Jose, Calif. - Qtrax, the developer of a free, ad-supported music download service, has reached a deal to license Universal Music Group's catalog, the company's first major label signing.

New York - Qtrax, the developer of a free, ad-supported, peer-to-peer song-sharing service, on Wednesday announced a new licensing agreement with Finetunes. The deal will bring tracks from the more than 1,000 German independent labels that Hamburg-based Finetunes represents.

New York - Qtrax, a company developing a free, ad-supported, peer-to-peer file-sharing service, announced on Monday that it has signed an agreement to include the catalog of U.K. independent label network Beggars Group. The deal includes tracks from artists on labels including Beggars Banquet, 4AD, XL Recordings and Matador Records. The company also recently signed deals with EMI Publishing, Sony/ATV Music Publishing and TVT Records.

DMW’s CEO & Publisher provides a wrap-up of the top stories of the week. Who’s hot, who’s not and what’s the industry buzz?

In my column last week, I predicted that there may be a silver lining in Yahoo’s recent troubles and low share price in the form of a possible takeover bid from rival Microsoft. Voilà! In a bold move that sent ripples through Silicon Valley before sunrise on Friday, Microsoft (NASD: MSFT) announced that it has made an unsolicited $44.6 billion takeover bid