Small Music Labels See YouTube Battle as Part of War for Revenue

Anxiety about competition and fairness in the digital marketplace runs deep in the independent sector of the music industry.

Small labels complain that consolidation by the major record companies has left them squeezed in negotiations with the online music services that now account for a majority of their revenue. Executives and advocates for the indies say they are vulnerable to strong-arm tactics by Internet giants like YouTube, which has recently threatened to block some labels’ videos unless they sign new licensing deals.