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Rdio extends free trial period for music plan

Music startup Rdio has joined several competitors in a crowded field of all-you-can-listen services by taking the time limit off its free trial.
/ Source: The Associated Press

Music startup Rdio has joined several competitors in a crowded field of all-you-can-listen services by taking the time limit off its free trial.

The trial had been limited to seven days, and those wanting to continue had to pay for a subscription.

The new plan will give people using computers several months' worth of free listening to any track they want out of a library of 12 million songs. Mobile device users will still have seven days of free listening before being asked to pay.

Rdio, whose backers include Skype co-founder Janus Friis, is offering the trial without ads.

CEO Drew Larner said the amount of free listening on computers will be dynamic and based on individual use patterns. A full mobile subscription plan costs $10 per month, while a computer-based one costs half that.

If people don't start paying after their free listening ends, they can return in about a month for more free use.

Competitors Spotify and Rhapsody offer similar free trials but use audio and display ads to help pay for royalties that the companies must pay on the music.