Despite selling only music from independent labels, eMusic has managed to carve out quite a niche for itself over the years, consistently ranking second to Apple's iTunes among digital music stores.

But according to a report in Billboard over the weekend, eMusic has a problem on its hands, as at least six of its labels are upset over how much they receive per download from eMusic and are considering pulling their content from its catalog.

Citing anonymous sources, Billboard said the companies are unhappy with eMusic's pricing model, which allows users to download songs for between 25 cents and 33 cents per song, provided that the user downloads the maximum number of songs allowed per month.

After factoring in distribution costs and other expenses, some labels receive as little as 12 cents per song in profit, the report found--far less than the 60 cents to 65 cents per track received from iTunes.

"We've been partners with eMusic since the very beginning, and it is a great way for our customers to discover music," one of the label execs told the mag. "I hope they can make it a better value proposition for the labels. But if they don't, we are planning on pulling out."

In an e-mail today, eMusic CEO David Pakman said his company found fault with the report and said the majority of the more than 13,000 indie labels working with eMusic are happy with its service.

"Labels make decisions every day on how to sell their artists' music and what is best for their business, and the vast majority are pleased with their business on eMusic," Pakman wrote.

But he conceded that the debate about digital music pricing is ongoing. Pakman has previously stated that eMusic's lower prices ultimately result in more revenue through greater volume, and that eMusic pays labels an average of $6 a month per subscriber, compared with the average of 10 songs a year bought on iTunes.

"We're in an era where the customer now determines whether an artist is successful or not, what format music should take, and how much it should cost," he wrote. "Questions about pricing are in reality part of a larger debate about what consumers are willing to pay when an expanded range of entertainment forms--including movies, DVDs, videogames--are competing for a slice of their wallet."