Lala, my favorite online music site is going to be shut off on May 31. The free service lets you listen to any song you want. Apple purchased it in December 2009.
In an email sent today, Apple wrote:
“In appreciation of your support over the last five years, you will receive a credit in the amount of your Lala web song purchases for use on Apple’s iTunes Store. If you purchased and downloaded mp3 songs from Lala, those songs will continue to play as part of your local music library. Remaining wallet balances and unredeemed gift cards will be converted to iTunes Store credit (or can be refunded upon request). Gift cards can be redeemed on Lala until May 31st.”
Of course, there’s all sorts of speculation as to what Apple is going to do with the Lala product. Many people believe Apple will offer a subscription music service, using Lala as the backbone.