The new capabilities will be unveiled next week as part of a service tentatively called Google OneBox, according to five executives who have been briefed on the matter but declined to be identified because they are not authorized to disclose the information.
Although Internet users already have lots of ways to access music, Google’s (GOOG) involvement could make the initiative important.
“Radio has lost its mojo” for promoting songs, says Phil Leigh, president of market research firm Inside Digital Media. “When new releases come out, people do a Google search.”
But that’s been a frustrating experience for some fans — and for record companies, which have been lobbying the No. 1 search company to change the way results are displayed when people want to track a favorite performer or song.
The current arrangement just offers links to other destinations and often features a grab bag of fan sites, without a clear way to find the music itself. [read: USA Today]
