Billy Bragg Takes On MySpace

Outspoken politico popsmith Billy Bragg has removed his songs from popular networking site MySpace.com after accusing it of exploiting musicians and taking away their rights. Posting on his page, Bragg wrote: "Sorry there’s no music. Once an artist posts up any content (including songs) it then belongs to MySpace (aka Rupert Murdoch) and they can do what they want with it, throughout the world, without paying the artist.” According to the website’s microscopic, well-hidden print, when an artist posts music they agree to: "Hereby grant Myspace.com a non-exclusive, fully-paid and royalty-free worldwide license (with the rights to sublicense through unlimited levels of sublicensees) to use, copy, modify, adapt, translate, publicly perform, publicly display, store, reproduce, transmit and distribute such content on and through the services.” However, MySpace has made a move to rectify the policy with spokesperson Jeff Berman stating: "Because the legalese has caused some confusion we are at work revising it to make it every clear that MySpace is not seeking a license to do anything with an artist’s work other than allow it to be shared in the manner the artist intends. Obviously, we don’t own their music or do anything with it that they don’t want.”