We all <3 music.

However, not everyone has their own computer (or enough disk space, or money…) to buy and house all of their media files.

What comes to mind immediately is Pandora, which creates playlists off of a particular song/artist that you input, but there are more options for all of you out there.

These sites are great for listening to music at work (where you can’t download files) or if you just need some change in your life.

WIRED magazine wrote a great article on the “Top 10 Hottest Music Sites” and here is an article from RWW about Online Streaming Audio.

But personally, I’ve been obsessed with SeeqPod lately, since I can replay songs as I want. Which is good if you’re of the music control freak type. However, given the design of the system, you are at the mercy of what’s available on the internet. BUT… you can play the WHOLE song… it’s a great way to test out the WHOLE song before you buy it, unlike iTunes.

If you’re looking to create a “mix” try MixWit, where you can add music from Seeqpod, pictures and artwork, and then share it on Facebook. (and it’s pretty, unlike Seeqpod).

Deezer is a good option too :)

However, as in the case with all who have preceded them, those who are trailblazers in streaming audio technology will face hard times.

For example, take MuxTape. A fairly straightforward site that allowed you to create online “mix tapes.” No downloding, so its okay, right? wrong.

MuxTape’s founder writes this on their current home page:

There was a popular misconception that Muxtape only survived because it was “flying under the radar,” and the moment the major labels found out about it it’d be shut down. In actuality, the labels and the RIAA read web sites like everyone else, and I heard from them both within a week or so. An RIAA notice arrived in triplicate, via email, registered mail, and FedEx overnight (with print and CD versions). They demanded that I take down six specific muxtapes they felt were infringing, so I did.

Around the same time I got a call from the VP of anti-piracy at one of the majors. After I picked up the phone his first words were, “Justin, I just have one question for you: where do I send the summons and complaint?” The conversation picked up from there. There was no summons, it was an intimidation tactic setting the tone for the business development meeting he was proposing, the true reason for the call. Around the same time another one of the big four’s business developers reached out to me, too.

And so I made one of the hardest decisions I’ve ever faced: I walked away from the licensing deals. They had become too complex for a site founded on simplicity, too restrictive and hostile to continue to innovate the way I wanted to. They’d already taken so much attention away from development that I started to question my own motivations. I didn’t get into this to build a big company as fast as I could no matter what the cost, I got into this to make something simple and beautiful for people who love music, and I plan to continue doing that. As promised, the site is coming back, but not as you’ve known. I’m taking a feature that was in development in the early stages and making it the new central focus.

Muxtape is relaunching as a service exclusively for bands, offering an extremely powerful platform with unheard-of simplicity for artists to thrive on the internet. Musicians in 2008 without access to a full time web developer have few options when it comes to establishing themselves online, but their needs often revolve around a common set of problems. The new Muxtape will allow bands to upload their own music and offer an embeddable player that works anywhere on the web, in addition to the original muxtape format. Bands will be able to assemble an attractive profile with simple modules that enable optional functionality such as a calendar, photos, comments, downloads and sales, or anything else they need. The system has been built from the ground up to be extended infinitely and is wrapped in a template system that will be open to CSS designers. There will be more details soon. The beta is still private at the moment, but that will change in the coming weeks.

So, given that… I just hope that seeqpod and pandora don’t shut down.   STAY ALIVE, WE NEED YOU!!!!!!!!!! And, note to self… if you’re thinking of starting an online music streaming company, make sure to have a lawyer on retainer.