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NEW YORK – JUNE 5, 2006 -- EMI Music, the world’s largest
independent music company, and e-commerce software developer
LTDnetwork Inc. today announced that EMI is the first major music
company to make its catalogue of recordings available to what will
be the world’s first advertising-supported, legal peer-to-peer music
distribution service. The service, called Qtrax, was developed
by LTDnetwork, and at launch, will provide fans with free,
advertising-funded access to high-quality, high-fidelity digital
music files, as well as the option to subscribe to a premium version
of the service or to purchase music tracks and albums on an a la
carte basis.
Qtrax will offer two tiers of service: the first is a free,
advertising-supported tier designed to work with and filter
copyrighted content from existing peer-to-peer networks. The
second tier is a premium subscription service which will require a
monthly fee. The two-tiered business model is intended to
attract a broad base of consumers to try out the service, and then
graduate those consumers to purchase music permanently or
subscribe.
In the ad-supported, free tier, users will be able to search the
network for specific tracks, and those tracks registered with Qtrax
will be made available for download in Qtrax’s proprietary “.mpq”
file format. Users will then be able to play the downloaded
.mpq file in full-fidelity sound quality for a pre-defined number of
times. Each time a consumer plays a track, the Qtrax player
will also offer fans click-to-buy purchase options, as well as the
opportunity to upgrade to a premium subscription service for a flat
monthly fee.
The premium subscription service tier uses Microsoft’s Janus DRM
technology, which allows consumers to pay a monthly fee for
unlimited access to music in the Qtrax network. Subscribers
will also have the ability to transfer content to Windows Media
enabled portable devices for as long as the subscription stays
active.
The service will also include consumer-friendly
community-building and music discovery tools which enable fans to
easily access to a vast selection of music and other content, all
while generating revenues for artists and content owners.
“Working with Qtrax is just one way EMI is actively supporting
emerging business models, technologies and platforms to deliver
music to fans,” said David Munns, Chairman and CEO of EMI Music
North America. “Of course, we think that any ad-supported model
should be offered in a way that maintains, or even enhances the
value of music, and we believe Qtrax does that by offering a good
consumer experience and significant up-selling
opportunities. Our collaboration with Qtrax will give us great
consumer insight and help us gauge the boundaries between sampling
and purchasing music. Ultimately, the feedback we get from
Qtrax will help EMI be more responsive to consumer demand. The
Qtrax service will also ensure that our artists are compensated for
their works and that the value of their music and integrity of our
content is protected.”
In addition, Qtrax will offer incentive programs that will allow
fans to accrue points redeemable for additional plays for tracks
acquired through the free service, or for discounts off a la carte
purchases or subscription fees.
“Qtrax is an innovative approach to creating a legitimate P2P
offering, so we are pleased that EMI has agreed to be the first of
the major music companies to participate. In addition to
offering a great consumer experience which we believe will get more
consumers excited about digital music, Qtrax will ensure that
artists are getting paid when their songs are accesses in a P2P
environment. In addition, EMI and other music companies will
share in Internet advertising revenues, which according to the
Interactive Advertising Bureau and PricewaterhouseCoopers reached a
new record of $3.9 billion for the first quarter of 2006 in the US -
a 38 percent increase over Q1 2005,” said Allan Klepfisz, President
& CEO of Brilliant Technologies Corporation, parent company of
LTDnetwork.
The
Qtrax service is expected to enter a test phase later this year and
will initially pilot the service in the United States. In
preparation for the launch, EMI will immediately begin delivering
and registering its content with Qtrax’s filtering system, powered
by Audible Magic.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
About LTDnetwork Inc. Based in New York, NY
and founded in October 2000, LTDnetwork is a division of Brilliant
Technologies Corporation (OTCBB: BLLNE). LTDnetwork has spent the
last five years creating unique proprietary software at its
Australian subsidiary in Melbourne. LTDnetwork specializes in the
development of innovative technologies, software, and services for
online retail, advertising, media and marketing companies.
LTDnetwork is dedicated to providing online businesses and third
party solution providers with innovative technologies, software, and
services which target the consumer with the right message at the
right time in what have now become the hottest areas for software
applications: music downloading, automatic price comparison and
highly targeted advertising.
About EMI Music EMI is the world's largest
independent music company, operating directly in 50 countries. Its
EMI Music division represents more than 1,000 artists spanning all
musical tastes and genres. Its record labels include Angel,
Astralwerks, Blue Note, Capitol, Capitol Nashville, EMI Classics,
EMI CMG, EMI Records, EMI Televisa Music, Manhattan, Mute,
Parlophone and Virgin. For further information on EMI, please visit:
http://www.emigroup.com/.
# # #
For more information, contact: Jeanne Meyer,
EMI Music, 212.786.8850 Adam Grossberg, EMI Music,
212.786.8855 Rich Schineller, PRMGT.com for LTDnetwork,
941.918.1913 |