I am a huge fan of Pandora and have used it since Day 1, so I was surprised and upset to read that it would no longer be available in the UK.
British fans of the Pandora net radio service will be cut off on 15 January.
The reason for this is the row over royalties, which is now hitting the UK. According to founder Tim Westergren the rates wanted per track by UK licensing authorities were too high to support and would result in an uneconomical business model. The UK was the last non US region to be covered by Pandora as they tried to negotiate royalties not covered by their agreement in the US under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act which basically covers them in the US but nowhere else.
Hopefully all is not lost as the fight continues to get Pandora back on air, but as of 15th January the UK will be silent as far as Pandora is concerned.
I used it a lot a couple of years back, but haven’t used it since then. I think it was in the days before they officially covered the UK. I vaguely recall having to find a US address with which to register and always feeling a little guilty about using the service.
Although I wouldn’t currently consider myself a user, I am saddened by the news. I always admired the idea behind the service and figured I’d be back sooner or later.
Here’s a public statement (an apology to UK users) from them: Labels And Publishers Force Blocking Of Pandora In The Uk.
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