Earlier this year we caught wind of Rhapsody's plans to extend its reach as far as it can go when it comes to digital music. From wifi-enabled devices to online social networks, it became quie clear that Rhapsody was really beginning to tap into its newly established relationship with RealNetworks. Now, Rhapsody is taking that relationship even further, with more partnerships across more companies in order to become more accessible to a wide range of consumers. The new initiative is called "Music Without Limits," and encompasses Rhapsody's relationship with RealNetworks and MTV Networks.
The foundation of this new initiative seems to be the fact that Rhapsody is taking the big leap into DRM-free music sales, converting its entire catalog to DRM-free music. The prices are pretty much what you'd expect-- 99 cents for a song and about $10 for an album. If you catch one of the new accounts for Rhapsody's online store, you'll even get credits for a free album.
But in true Rhapsody form, the end goal here is to make music available to everyone, everywhere. So if you head over to Yahoo Music, you'll find that it's powered by the new Rhapsody store. Last year, Yahoo Music underwent some major changes that were reflective of Yahoo's underlying problems as a company. However, a partnership with RealNetworks earlier this year gave us some insight as to Yahoo's plans for its music portal, and it's now come to fruition.
Another feature you'll appreciate from Rhapsody is the full-length music previews for non-members, which you'll begin to find in many online that already have working deals with Rhapsody, and others, such as iLike, that are forging new relationships with the music company.
Lastly, there's a new deal that Rhapsody has worked out with Verizon VCast's mobile service. As Verizon has become rather media-centric with its newer devices and extra subscription services, the wireless provider has teamed up with broadcast networks like NBC and others in order to offer a variety of media through handhelds.
