DOT-DOT-DOT-COM: GOOGLE MUSIC, MERLIN-YOUTUBE, FREE BIEBER!

Onstage at the AsiaD conference in Hong Kong today, Android boss Andy Rubin confirmed that Google is finally close to launching a music service with help from the labels, AllThingsD reports. “I think we’re close,” he said, adding that Google’s version “will have a little twist—it will have a little Google in it. It won’t just be selling 99-cent tracks.” But thus far, only EMI is said to be close to a final deal, causing Peter Kafka to ask why talks with the majors fell apart earlier this year. In answering, Rubin takes a new tack, according to Kafka: he says media companies in general haven’t been able to figure out what Google is up to. Just like Steve Jobs’ company used to be called Apple Computer and evolved into Apple, he explains, Google is morphing as well. “Google is in the very, very early phases of adding consumer products to our portfolio,” he said. “The media industry didn’t see us as that. They saw us a search company.”… Indie music agency Merlin will license repertoire from hundreds of labels to YouTube in a global deal, the two companies announced on Wednesday. The agreement covers thousands of acts, including Yeasayer, Antony and the Johnsons, Aphex Twin, Prodigy and Grizzly Bear. The deal, Digital Media Wire points out, is the culmination of lengthy negotiations, which Merlin and YouTube said underscores YouTube’s commitment to the indie music sector as well as Merlin’s determination to secure competitive terms on behalf of its members. Among the labels involved in this deal are Earache, Secretly Canadian, Ninja Tune, Cooking Vinyl, Warp, Phonofile, Pschent, Morr Music, !K7 and Inertia. Said YouTube Head of Global Music Partnerships Chris Maxcy: “We’re continually looking for new ways to connect independent artists with their fans, and we’re thrilled to have struck a deal with Merlin that will help us do just that, while compensating them for their efforts at the same time.” The agreement generates revenues to Merlin’s member labels whenever their official releases, or user-generated videos featuring their songs, are played on YouTube. Merlin has existing deals with a number of digital services, including Rdio, Spotify, MySpace Music, Catch Media, Simfy and Sony’s Music Unlimited powered by Qriocity (just rolls off the tongue, don’t it?)… Senate bill 978, drawn up by Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), would make it a felony for Internet users to stream unlicensed content 10 times in 180 days. The bill is being pushed by the RIAA, the MPAA “and others who seek to crush to Internet freedoms for the sake of higher corporate profits,” states a press release from Fight for the Future, “a new organization vowing to fight for Americans' tech freedoms,” and spread around by Rock & Rap Confidential. The legislation was passed unanimously by the Senate Judiciary Committee earlier this summer; introduction of a House version is expected in coming weeks. “S.978 would criminalize precisely what Bieber (and his mom) did to gain global renown: posting videos online of the young singer covering pop songs,” the FFTF release points out. “Those videos are still on the Internet, so if Bieber doesn't pull them all down right away, he could be prosecuted and sent to the slammer for five years on felony charges. The legislation applies to an incredibly broad swath of normal social media activity: It would become a felony to post cover band songs, karaoke videos, footage of people dancing to music, videos with music playing in the background, and on and on. FFTF encourages Internet users to visit www.FreeBieber.org to urge their Senators to oppose S.978. The site collects Photoshop renditions of Justin Bieber in jail, and urges visitors to record a video of themselves “behind bars” to post to their YouTube and Facebook accounts.” Says co-founder Holmes Wilson: "What's genuinely troubling is that this bill applies to a massive slice of social media activity. And if you doubt that the RIAA and MPAA (lobbies for the music and film industries) would push the government to go after teenage Facebook users, remember: these are the same people who used $7,000-per-song civil penalties designed to punish large-scale commercial piracy to sue 14-year-old P2P users and their families."… Slacker’s listener base could double following its new deal with AOL Radio stations, notes Digital Music News. In related news, NARM's digitalmusic.org has named Slacker VP Jack Isquith as chair of its Music Subscription Work Group.