Internet Music Streaming Website Lala Shutting Down May 31

The internet streaming service known as Lala was bought by Apple last year, prompting speculation about what the company would do with the cloud-based music service. Now we know. Apple will be shutting down the service May 31, and as of today, is no longer accepting new users according to an announcement on the Lala site.

Customers who have bought music on Lala will still be able to play MP3s on their computers and MP3 players. As of today though, no new music will be uploaded to the service and web songs and gift cards can no longer be purchased. Customers who still have a balance on their Lala “wallet” have until May 31 to purchase and download MP3s. Anyone unable to use their wallet balance by May 31 will be given an iTunes gift certificate for the equivalent amount or can request a check for the amount of the balance, as long as they request a refund before May 31. Any refunds owed by Lala will be issued by June 14 according the company. As web songs will no longer work, customers who have purchased web songs will be given a credit in the iTunes store equivalent to the amount of Lala web songs purchases.

Obviously, Lala is a big part of our music coverage here at Paste. The website will be missed.

Got news tips for Paste? Email news@pastemagazine.com.