EMI claims to have signed deals with 20 European digital music distributors, the aim being to sell its music on the Internet LEGALLY.

Songs by Norah Jones, Pink Floyd and David Bowie will be among 140,000 tracks made available for downloading through 20 European Web sites including Wanadoo, Microsoft Corp's MSN, music channel MTV and retailer HMV.

Illegal online services, kick-started by the original maverick Napster, have brought the music industry to its knees in the past few years, forcing global music sales sharply lower.

In a drive to combat such piracy, music companies have been backing legitimate subscription sites. But they have so far had little success in persuading users to abandon file-sharing sites such as Kazaa which carry a larger selection and are free.

Under the EMI deal, consumers will be able to make permanent copies of songs and transfer them to recordable CDs, portable music players and their computer hard drives. Consumers can also purchase singles online once they hit radio airwaves.

"We need to use all legitimate means possible to hamper piracy and make as much music available online as possible," said Tony Wadsworth, CEO of EMI Recorded Music UK and Ireland. It appears as if the industry may finally be getting its act together.