And Now, a Tune From Our Sponsor

The soon-to-launch MySpace Music service will consist mostly of sponsored streaming and downloads, Wired reports. MySpace will likely not start up its own pay-download service, along the lines of iTunes, instead maintaining its partnership with Amazon’s online store. Critics worry MySpace’s rather thin roster of major-label partnerships will limit the stream of free content for users.

Those partnerships, which include Sony and Warner, don’t seem to bother the corporate sponsors whose logos will adorn the free music. McDonald’s, Toyota, and others have signed on, Reuters reports. Labels hope MySpace’s venture will prove viable to Apple’s iTunes, which is the dominant online source of music in the US. An executive has yet to be announced to head the new service, and the launch date is uncertain. (More MySpace Music stories.)