Amazon is nearing deals with the world’s largest record labels to launch a subscription¹ music streaming service as soon as next month, according to two people familiar with the matter.

据两位知情人士透露，亚马逊(Amazon)接近与全球各大唱片公司达成交易，最快于下月推出付费音乐流媒体服务。

Pandora is also closing in on licensing² agreements for an on-demand streaming service, which the internet radio provider has said it aims to debut³ later this year.

Pandora也即将获得点播流媒体服务的许可权协议，这家互联网广播提供商表示，计划在今年晚些时候推出该服务。

However, a September launch is unlikely, according to someone close to the company.

但据熟悉该公司的人表示，9月推出的可能性不大。

Both companies are planning services for $9.99 a month, the price point that has become the industry standard, putting them in direct competition with Spotify and Apple Music for listeners.

两家公司均计划以每月9.99美元——该价位已成为行业标准——的价格推出服务，这令它们要直接与Spotify和Apple Music争夺听众。

If the deals go through, Amazon and Pandora will enter a crowded field as the industry looks to replace years of shrinking album sales with streaming, which has become the dominant⁴ form of digital music consumption.

如果这些交易成功落实，亚马逊和Pandora将进入一块拥挤的领域，该行业正寻求以流媒体来取代多年萎缩的专辑销售；流媒体已成为数字音乐消费的主要形式。

Spotify, Apple, SoundCloud, Deezer, Tidal and Google Play also offer music subscriptions⁵ for $9.99 a month, while Vevo has flagged plans to introduce a service later this year.

Spotify、苹果、SoundCloud、Deezer和Google Play也提供音乐订阅，费用均为每月9.99美元，Vevo表示有计划在今年晚些时候推出一项服务。

Spotify and Apple Music have a clear lead over the competition, with 30m and 15m paying customers, respectively.

Spotify与Apple Music在这场竞争中拥有明显的领先优势，其付费用户人数分别为3000万和1500万。

Amazon is likely to pay the music labels royalty⁶ rates comparable to those of Apple, according to people familiar with the negotiations⁷.

据熟悉亚马逊与唱片公司谈判的人士表示，亚马逊向这些公司支付的版税很可能与苹果相当。

Apple pays slightly higher rates than Spotify, which pays about 70 per cent of its revenue to music rights holders⁸.

苹果支付的版税略高于Spotify，后者约70%的收入上交给音乐版权持有者。

Amazon did not reply to a request for comment.

亚马逊未回复置评请求。