British rockers Muse are fuming after bosses at their record company decided to withdraw free songs from the internet, branding the move "disappointing".

Executives at Warner Music announced earlier this month they were withdrawing permission for their artists' songs to be used by sites including Spotify, We7 and Last.fm - which offer free access to millions of tracks.

Instead chiefs at Warner are throwing their support behind paid download sites such as iTunes, and streaming services which charge for content.

Muse are one of the most popular acts on the label - and bassist Chris Wolstenholme thinks Warner chiefs are "clutching at straws" with the move.

He tells BBC's Newsbeat, "It's like taking your song off the radio, isn't it? You're instantly taking your song away from a group of potential listeners.

"The corporations are setting the rules on these things because they're clutching at straws. They've lost so much money on record sales because of the internet.

"I do sometimes feel that this whole restriction that's been set on how your music can get out there these days - that doesn't ever really come from the bands. It's coming from the corporations behind everything. As far as bands are concerned you just want people to hear your music whichever way they can."