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Google is trying to increase it’s poor market share in China by offering free legal downloads of licensed songs.  According to the Reuters report, Google’s main Chinese competitor, Baidu, is facing lawsuits for allowing copyright infringement through downloading unlicensed songs.

The new service from Google will allow Chinese internet users to search thousands of Chinese artists and songs, which can then be downloaded from Top100.cn. 

Estimates from the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (think international RIAA) estimate that pirated files are currently more than 99-percent of all files downloaded in China.  In a country that recently released numbers putting it at the highest number of internet users in the world, that’s pretty big.

It’s cool that Google is trying to raise its market share by offering free music downloads, but it would be cool if they could do it in the U.S. as well.  Sure, we’re not behind the Great Firewall, but doesn’t the rest of the world deserve free music downloads? Of course, as you would expect, Google will also place ads on the service which will have the revenue shared between Top100.cn and its music partners.

Read [Reuters]