GENNARO CASTALDO WATCH: Blimey, where have you been?

We're not sure what's happened to our old chum, Gennaro Castaldo. He's been quiet for too long.

But you can't silence a spokesperson forever, and now he's got something to say. And... erm, actually, he's asking the same question we did about the apparent abandonment of the "no free music" stance of the BPI-RIAA:

But Gennaro Castaldo, the spokesman for HMV, said while Universal's support of Spiralfrog had to be seen positively in terms of enriching the digital industry, it might confuse customers.

"We would broadly welcome any new service to the market because it has the effect of helping to expand it and demonstrates to customers that there is a life outside of the 'Apple garden'. The more people realise there are lots of different services and more MP3 players than just iPods the more it increases the market.

"What is a little concerning is that for a long time now, the trade body, BPI, has been anxious to put across an anti-illegal or piracy message, which suggests that music is of intrinsic value and people should be prepared to pay for it, so this may give a conflicting, mixed signal."

Of course, Gennaro's more worried because if people are giving music away, legally, he's going to wind up out of a job.

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