Matters of digital distribution are rather tricky when a content distribution firm has to deal with the European Union. Normally, it requires going through the regulatory processes of every country in the union. However, Google has been able to circumvent this by signing a pan-European music deal.
Actually, the work is not exactly the doing of Google. Google simply got lucky that it was able to link up to Armonia. Armonia is a rare new licensing approach which is a result of an alliance of publishers across Europe.
These publishers were able to nab the rights for some 5.5 million tracks from more than 30 countries, inside and outside Europe. This rare, collective venture by the publishers has been seen as a landmark achievement in the continent.
And this new licensing deal is what precisely allowed Google to offer its music services to the whole of Europe in one single stroke. If only Armonia was non-existent, Google would have to go through a painfully long process of fulfilling regulatory requirements of multiple countries before it could offer content for its European users.
This is good news for everyone – the artists, the publishers, the users and Google itself. Whereas the company may still have to comply with the specific requirements of some European countries, that should be a lot less complicated now.
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