Spotify signs deal with Universal Music

Music service startup Spotify has signed an American distribution deal with Universal Music, the third major record label to sign such an agreement, reports All Things Digital.

While the U.K.-based Spotify currently provides access to its streaming music service to parts of Europe, it has not been available in the U.S. The new deal with Universal may signal that it is likely to open up access in the U.S. very soon.

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The company signed deals with EMI and Sony earlier this year. Warner Music Group is the only major record label that has yet to reach a distribution agreement with Spotify, but that could happen soon, according to the report.

With Apple’s iCloud service signing agreements with all four major labels and potential future competition from Google’s and Amazon’s cloud-based music services, Spotify is no doubt anxious to make a U.S. launch happen.

Spotify’s European service allows customers to listen to a limited number of music per month for free, while offering unlimited access to paid subscribers. American subscribers would likely have the same deal, with cost of paid accounts in the range of $10, which is comparable to similar services.