Qtrax: EMI plant werbefinanzierte P2P Tauschbörse

Das Musiklabel EMI will mit dem Service „Qtrax“ künftig eine werbefinanzierte Tauschbörse einrichten. Geplant ist, dass die Musik in dieser Tauschbörse zunächst frei erhältlich ist. Ein herunter geladener Song kann aber nicht beliebig oft abgespielt werden (die Rede ist von 5 Abspielvorgängen). Sind diese Abspielvorgänge aufgebraucht, kann der User den Song kaufen oder sich für eine Musikflatrate registrieren, bei der alle Songs beliebig – und legal – herunter geladen werden können. In den USA soll die Testphase für dieses System noch in diesem Jahr beginnen.

Mit diesem Angebot kommt EMI dem Bedürfnis vieler Filesharer entgegen, Musik vor dem Erwerb erst einmal anhören zu wollen. Das „Stöbern“ nach guter Musik ist einer der Hauptgründe für die massenhaftenen Filesharing-Aktivitäten. Nur ein Teil der herunter geladenen Songs wird tatsächlich häufiger gehört.

Es folgt die EMI-Pressemitteilung im Originaltext:
5 June 2006  EMI Music becomes the first major music company to make its catalog available to Qtrax: the world’s first ad-supported, legitimate P2P service

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 catalog 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: www.emimusic.com.