LyricWiki stops supplying lyrics to applications

A number of lyric applications are about to lose their source of lyrics. Sean Colombo of LyricWiki has informed them that due to licensing restrictions from some of the major publishers, LyricWiki has to stop providing lyrics through the LyricWiki API. People were using this to run various applications, such as connecting lyrics to Last.fm profiles, iPhones or websites. It’s a shame, of course, to see talented programming be short-circuited. But it was only a question of time.

A pretty large business has been built on the back of song lyrics, and the lyric writers usually see neither recognition (as very few sites credit the actual songwriters) nor any financial benefits. Meanwhile, considerable amounts of money are changing hands through the advertising on these sites.

However, I’d recommend that the best programmers get in touch with publishers or MP3 or streaming product developers to try and bring their applications to the next level. Interest in lyrics is not going to die, and appliances and services might be interested in licensing applications.