News Corporation, owner of MySpace.com and the MySpace Music Service, is partnering with three of the four major record labels to create a new music website. The MySpace Music Service will be spun off into an independent venture with Sony BMG, Universal Music, and Warner Music Group. EMI is expected to join the partnership in the coming weeks. The exact terms of the deal and details about the new site, including prices for downloaded music tracks, have not been disclosed. MySpace said that the site will offer songs for download that are free of digital rights management. The site reportedly will also offer free online streaming of music, tickets, t-shirts, and other items.

The new venture will be run by an executive team that will report to a board made up of representatives from MySpace and the major music companies. MySpace first will have to prove that it can actually sell music. Though the company earns $70 million a month in advertising for the News Corporation, it has never successfully sold products on a wide scale.

Read the article on NYTimes.com: MySpace and Record Companies Create Music Site.