| 28th January 2008 07:45 AM |
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| PartyDoll MEG |
http://entertainment.timesonline.co...icle3261591.ece
January 28, 2008
From today, feel free to download another 25 million songs - legally
Adam Sherwin, Media Correspondent, in Cannes
After a decade fighting to stop illegal file-sharing, the music industry will give fans today what they have always wanted: an unlimited supply of free and legal songs.
With CD sales in free fall and legal downloads yet to fill the gap, the music industry has reluctantly embraced the file-sharing technology that threatened to destroy it. Qtrax, a digital service announced today, promises a catalogue of more than 25 million songs that users can download to keep, free and with no limit on the number of tracks.
The service has been endorsed by the very same record companies - including EMI, Universal Music and Warner Music – that have chased file-sharers through the courts in a doomed attempt to prevent piracy. The gamble is that fans will put up with a limited amount of advertising around the Qtrax website’s jukebox in return for authorised use of almost every song available.
The service will use the “peer-to-peer” network, which contains not just hit songs but rarities and live tracks from the world’s leading artists.
Nor is a lack of compatibility with the iPod player expected to put fans off. Apple is unlikely to allow tracks downloaded from its rival to be compatible with iPods, but, while the iPod is the most popular music player, it has not succeeded in dominating the market: sales of the iPod account for 50 million out of 130 million total digital player sales. Qtrax has also spoken of an “iPod solution”, to be announced in April.
Qtrax files contain Digital Rights Management software, allowing the company to see how many times a song has been downloaded and played. Artists, record companies and publishers will be paid in proportion to the popularity of their music, while also taking a cut of advertising revenues.
The Qtrax team, which spent five years working on the system, promised a “game-changing” intervention in the declining recorded music market when the service was presented at the Midem music industry convention in Cannes.
The singer James Blunt gave Qtrax a cautious welcome. “I’m amazed that we now accept that people steal music,” he said. “I was taught not to steal sweets from a sweet shop. But I want to learn how this service works, given the condition the music industry is in.”
Qtrax, a subsidiary of Brilliant Technologies Corporation, has raised $30 million (£15 million) to set up the service, which is available in the US and Europe from today. Allan Klepfisz, president of Qtrax, said: “Customers now expect music to be free but they do not want to use illegal sites. We believe this . . . has the support of the music industry and allows artists to get paid.”
Ford, McDonald’s and Microsoft are among the advertisers signed up to support what is thought to be the world’s largest legal music store. The service says that adverts will be nonintrusive and will not appear each time a song is played. As with iTunes, customers will have to download Qtrax software. They will own the songs permanently but will be encouraged to “dock” their player with the store every 30 days so it can gather information on which songs have been played.
Jean-Bernard Levy, chief executive of Vivendi Universal, said the crisis in the music industry had been overstated despite EMI’s radical cost-cutting. He said: “Look at Universal – we have double-digit profit margins. But we would like strong competition from the other major record companies to help the industry grow.” Universal has poached the Rolling Stones from EMI and Mr Levy said that others could follow as thousands of staff and artists are made redundant.
On the appearance of Qtrax, Mr Levy gave warning that the lack of compatibility between competing digital music players was as big a problem as file-sharing. And Paul McGuinness, the manager of U2, said that the sound quality of MP3 downloads was becoming an issue for bands and fans. “There is a growing consumer revolt against online audio quality,” he said.
[Edited by PartyDoll MEG] |
| 28th January 2008 08:58 AM |
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| gimmekeef |
I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop...Somehow there has to be a fee involved.And Ipods will play mp3's now so whats that all about?...Thanks Meg for posting this should be interesting as the onion is peeled. |
| 28th January 2008 09:09 AM |
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| open-g |
Pretty amazing news.
Legal downloading - from the music industrie - no payment^^
...sounds like an oxymoron
let's see how this works out
http://www.qtrax.com |
| 28th January 2008 09:09 AM |
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| PartyDoll MEG |
I was thinkin the same, gimmekeef..
Ain't nothin "free" in this life... |
| 28th January 2008 09:11 AM |
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| gimmekeef |
quote:
PartyDoll MEG wrote:
I was thinkin the same, gimmekeef..
Ain't nothin "free" in this life...
There are so many desperate asswipes in the studios these days without a clue as to what to do.Watch this be some super virus they use to wipe out illegal non DRM tracks on folks pc's....lol..I mean some company has invested 25 million to give me stuff for free?....Yeah sure unless this morphs into some new myspace thingy with a gagillion pop up ads.
[Edited by gimmekeef] |
| 28th January 2008 09:17 AM |
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| PartyDoll MEG |
I read the site..says it is free..
over and over again..
maybe you need to buy some special device to actually "play" the songs...
Tell ya what, gimmekeef and open-g...
I suggest you two be the first RO'ers to try it at midnight.  |
| 28th January 2008 09:22 AM |
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| gimmekeef |
Okay Meg..I just went out and bought 12 more hard drives...moved my best porn off my main drive and am ready to go..I'll download all 25 million tonight and let you know how it goes...Then when they shut down I'll offer them up for 5 cents each....lmaooo |
| 28th January 2008 09:38 AM |
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| Fiji Joe |
That site used to only let you download tunes in some really weird format and the songs would self-destruct on your computer after so many listens...I've read that that has changed and that it's free because you're subjected to advertisements...i.e., spyware perhaps...in any event, someone let me know if they have any luck... |
| 28th January 2008 09:45 AM |
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| PartyDoll MEG |
This just in... from bbc news
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertai...ent/7213112.stm
Labels deny deals on file sharing
Qtrax said it would carry tracks from "all the major labels"
Three major record labels have denied signing deals allowing their music to feature on a new file-sharing service offering unlimited free downloads.
The service, Qtrax, boasted it would carry up to 30 million tracks from "all the major labels".
But Warner, EMI and Universal all say they have not licensed their music.
Qtrax said it expected an agreement to be reached with Warner and that terms had been agreed with the others even if deals had not been formally signed.
Discussions ongoing
Qtrax aims to allow users to download music from the major labels for free, with advertising revenue used to pay licensing fees.
But Warner says it "has not authorised the use of our content on Qtrax's recently-announced service".
And Universal and EMI said discussions with Qtrax were still ongoing but that licensing deals were not in place.
A spokesman for Sony BMG - the other "big four" record label - was not available for comment.
Amazon store
Qtrax president Allan Klepfisz said that, while a deal with Warner had not been signed, he expected terms to be agreed "shortly".
"With everyone else, we have agreed on all terms," he said.
In some cases, deals had not been formally signed, he added.
Online retailer Amazon, meanwhile, has announced the international rollout of its digital music store.
The store, which is already operating in the US, allows customers to download music without any digital copying protection.
Millions of songs will be sold without Digital Rights Management (DRM) software, allowing - for example - customers to burn their own CDs freely.
Amazon says it is the only retailer to offer DRM-free MP3s for the four major record labels as well as thousands of independent record labels.
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| 28th January 2008 09:46 AM |
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| open-g |
Three of the 4 majors are all ready dening to have contracts with Qtrax.
Gimmekeith, you'll probably end up with 25 million Peter Gabriel We7 tracks.
Last.fm seems to work on a similar basis but limited to 3 free listenings.
http://blog.last.fm/2008/01/23/free-the-music
ah well, at least something's happening.
wait and see
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| 28th January 2008 09:50 AM |
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| sirmoonie |
If you guys would just shoplift CDs, you wouldn't have to worry about all these legal wranglings. |
| 28th January 2008 10:13 AM |
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| gimmekeef |
[quote]open-g wrote:
Three of the 4 majors are all ready dening to have contracts with Qtrax.
Gimmekeith, you'll probably end up with 25 million Peter Gabriel We7 tracks.
Or extra space for torrents! |
| 28th January 2008 10:36 AM |
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| GotToRollMe |
quote:
gimmekeef wrote:
Okay Meg..I just went out and bought 12 more hard drives...moved my best porn off my main drive and am ready to go..I'll download all 25 million tonight and let you know how it goes...Then when they shut down I'll offer them up for 5 cents each....lmaooo
Wotta guy! Our intrepid explorer! |
| 28th January 2008 10:44 AM |
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| gimmekeef |
quote:
GotToRollMe wrote:
Wotta guy! Our intrepid explorer!
Treading where no mortal lunatic dares! |
| 28th January 2008 10:55 AM |
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| guitarman53 |
I'm o.k. in that dept.-I've got every song I can imagine that I ever wanted from downloads, I'm into the music of my generation-The 60's & 70's, I hate today's crap music, except if The Stones come out with a new recording, then I'd get that, but other then that, I've got everything I've ever wanted. |
| 28th January 2008 11:52 AM |
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| Sioux |
And I, a child of the 60's, am STILL discovering music from that era that I for sure never heard back then! From the Midwest's Blue Things, to Texas' Mouse and the Traps....to Canadas' Ugly Ducklings, to the Dutch Outsiders. And all the Brit bands we never really heard in the States....the Move, Action, Pretty Things, the Creation, Downliners Sect, John's Children.....I could go on and on. So, I'm still "discovering"...
[Edited by Sioux] |
