Is Facebook planning to launch an online music platform?

Facebook is said to be planning to launch a music service this month listing music streaming services Spotify, MOG and Rdio as three of its initial launch partners, a tech site reported recently. Technology blog Mashable said Facebook may announce the music and media platform at its f8 developer conference on September 22. Evidence of Facebook’s music platform first surfaced in the code of Facebook’s recently launched video chat service, prompting rumors to circulate about an upcoming music service. The blog said, however, that a Facebook spokesperson appeared to downplay the situation. "There’s nothing new to announce," it quoted the spokesperson as saying. "Many of the most popular music services around the world are integrated with Facebook and we’re constantly talking to our partners about ways to improve these integrations." Mashable cited two sources familiar with the matter who had said that Facebook will not directly host the music but would instead rely on third-party players to provide content. It added that Spotify, Rdio and MOG—top online music streaming sites today—are being eyed as initial partners, although it is not immediately clear if Facebook has lined up other launch partners. One of the sources reportedly said Facebook does not like playing favorites, hinting at a situation where Facebook will eventually open up its music platform to other developers. Mashable likewise cited rumors that Facebook intends for this platform to go beyond music, hinting at the prospects of streaming movies by Netflix on the popular social networking site. In contrast, Apple, Google and Amazon have services that host music content on their servers. —JMT/RSJ, GMA News