Coldplay’s release follows a change of heart on the part of Metallica. The heavy-metal group is best known for its fast, aggressive rock – and the fact that, in 2000, it filed thethe lawsuit that ultimately killed Napster, the popular file-sharing system. But it looks like the band is getting ready to embrace the internet and the new business models it makes possible. “We’ve been observing Radiohead and Trent Reznor,” Metallica’s Lars Ulrich tells Rolling Stone, a reference to two groups that sold music directly to fans over the Internet instead of relying on a music label to distribute the albums to stores. “We’ll be looking forward to everything in terms of possibilities with the Internet.”

Radiohead and Reznor’s Nine Inch Nails have seemingly been trying to one-up each other when it comes to using the Internet in innovative ways. Radiohead released its latest album, In Rainbows, on its Web site and invited fans to download it for whatever they felt was fair. Nine Inch Nails then released multiple versions of its album, Ghosts, on its Web site, with prices ranging from free to 300$. Not to be outdone, Radiohead invited fans to remix one of its songs and upload their versions to the band’s site.

Other rock stars are getting in on the act. Earlier this month, Motley Crue released its new single as a download for the video game Rock Band. (Yes, we are as shocked as you that the consummate 80s hair band is still recording.) And lest you think it’s only hard rockers who are experimenting with alternate means of distribution, Will Smith, the family-friendly pop and film star, recently launched a Web site to distribute high definition videos for free.