Ask HN: How does music licensing work?

[hackthisuk]

I have an idea for a new project that would allow users to listen to radio-style broadcasts online. I am at a loss on how to go about paying for a license to make such a site legal. Does anyone know of a service that allows streaming of music legally to third-parties? It would be desirable to both pay for and source music through the same platform.

[detaro]

If it really is radio-style, look into the licensing for online radio streaming. As far as I remember those rules were relatively easy to implement.