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Google Smacks Down on Free MP3 Blogs

Over the last couple days, Google -- which owns the popular Blogger/Blogspot platform -- has been on rampage, deleting popular MP3 blogs in all genres of music. Sure, these sites posted illegal files for sampling sometimes, yet all of them complied with requests to take down material in a timely manner. This is how the Internet has been naturally doing things for the last few years, yet Google was apparently a little sick and tired of all the back-and-forth and has given the boot to at least six sites, including Pop Tarts Suck Toasted, It's A Rap, I Rock Cleveland and Living Ears. The sites received the following letter, which was posted on the new LivingEars.com:


We'd like to inform you that we've received another complaint regarding your blog (http://livingears.blogspot.com/). Upon review of your account, we've noted that your blog has repeatedly violated Blogger's Terms of Service (http://www.blogger.com/terms.g). Given that we've provided you with several warnings of these violations and advised you of our policy towards repeat infringers, we've been forced to remove your blog.
Thank you for your understanding.
Sincerely,
The Blogger Team


"Blogger and Google have finally struck down upon music blogs," said an angry post from the blog We All Want Someone To Shout For. " ... When Google gets complaints from the big labels and legal companies, they always take action. It started with deleting posts that got complaints, and that is why I moved to Wordpress in the winter of 2008. I had a feeling that soon it wouldn't just be posts, but it would gradually move on to the entire blogs themselves."

This move was way more sudden and abrupt than anticipated. These bloggers have built a solid audience with quality content and are in the process of moving to new sites, but the bulk of their own material is gone without warning.

"I would have at least loved a heads-up so that I could have backed up my files," read a post on the newly-launched It's A Rap. "I am starting new, fresh but will do some re-posts and try to get all the original material back onto the site. Let's get our viewers back and make It's A Rap better then before."

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