Napster 5 Track Stream

Napster this morning tried an alternative to its struggling unlimited and per-track download services by offering an especially low-cost plan. The new plan limits unlimited access to streaming through the web but gives users five MP3 songs to keep each month; in return, subscribers pay just $5 per month. Napster continues to give access to radio stations and playlists and sees the new plan as a way of letting users explore music in a platform-independent way for those who prefer singles instead of whole albums.

US residents get access to the plan today; international releases haven't been detailed.

The option is just a fraction of the $10 regular and $15 Napster To Go plans and is likely a concession to the current marketplace. Both of the more expensive plans offer unlimited downloads but only in a copy-protected Windows Media format, whose incompatibility with iPhones and iPods has given users few incentives to adopt Napster's subscription service. Per track sales continue to depend on MP3s.

By Electronista Staff