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5.18.2004
QTRAX and BMI Announce Licensing Agreement
BMI and technology companies Singwell International and LTDnetwork today
announced that they have completed a licensing agreement for the peer to
peer technologies QTRAX and Xpeer. QTRAX and Xpeer are scheduled to
launch in the third quarter of 2004.
"Since we signed the first license for the performance of music on the
Internet, we have continued to work with emerging technologies that
create new venues for the performance of BMI music. By signing the BMI
agreement, QTRAX is breaking new ground for a new breed of licensed
peer-to-peer services," said Richard Conlon, Vice President, Business
Development and Marketing, Media Licensing at BMI. "The QTRAX service
includes a new QTRAX file format, which secures the music within its
environment. We hope that the BMI agreement will be the first in a
series of agreements that QTRAX and others will enter into, to create
totally licensed services."
Mike Rudd, President & CEO of Singwell International said, "It has taken
two and a half years to reach Singwell's goal of facilitating a middle
ground between the record industry, songwriters, publishers and the P2P
software industry. Each of these industry stakeholders will benefit from
the targeted promotion to the consumer we can provide. "
The QTRAX software will enable consumers to download and play songs for
free on their PCs while revenue is utilized from targeted advertising to
fund the distribution of royalties to artists. Should consumers wish to
burn the song to CD or download to an mp3 player, a fee will become
payable. The software also alters the file type by permanently attaching
digital rights management features to the mp3 files. These alterations
will result in the automatic reporting of performance data to BMI while
retaining user anonymity. "We look at this technology as revolutionary
in the P2P space," said Rudd.
The digital rights management features have been developed by
LTDnetwork, Inc. for installation into Singwell's QTRAX product. "We
believe that this long-awaited service is a solution to the current
struggle with the P2P dilemma, and will open the door to a more
profitable way to conduct business in this space," added Rudd.
"There is a new generation that considers it their birthright to
download music free. Our goal is to find a way to at least partially
satisfy this view while entering into licensing arrangements that
provide revenue for the artists and the industry. Being legitimate
should not preclude giving consumers what they want," said Allan
Klepfisz, President & CEO, LTDnetwork, Inc.
Singwell International is an international technology distribution
company that distributes QTRAX technology and related P2P products.
LTDnetwork, Inc. specializes in the development of innovative
proprietary software for leading Internet companies in the online
advertising, price comparison, music download and gaming sectors.
Headquartered in New York City with its R&D facilities in Melbourne,
Australia, LTDnetwork, Inc. develops products that can significantly and
often uniquely enhance the performance of companies in these business
segments, while providing attractive additional functionality for
consumers.
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