June 6, 2006 8:01AM  |
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Mike Goodman, an analyst at Yankee Group, said that the new incarnation of Qtrax was not all that different from the new, current incarnation of Napster. “Napster is similarly an ad-supported service,” he said, “but it uses a centralized server rather than pure P2P. P2P is a more efficient mechanism, in that it leverages users to distribute product.”
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 EMI Music, one of the world’s largest labels, announced on Monday that it will make its music available through Qtrax, a revived, now-legal peer-to-peer (P2P) network featuring a free advertising-supported level and a premium subscription level.The new Qtrax, developed by New York-based LTDnetwork, will allow users to download copyrighted songs freely from other P2P networks, then play those songs in full-fidelity for a limited number of times. At each playing, users will be given the opportunity to purchase the music or sign up for the premium service. In this ad-based music model, users will be able to search through millions of songs, including titles on the Gnutella network. Those titles registered with Qtrax will be made available in Qtrax’s proprietary “.mpq” format. Other music companies will receive 50 percent of revenues from ads featured when one of their songs is played.
The premium level will offer unlimited music downloads for a flat monthly fee. Songs downloaded will use Microsoft ‘s Janus digital-rights management (DRM) technology. The monthly pricing for the premium level has not yet been announced. “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,” said David Munns, Chairman and CEO of EMI Music North America, in a statement. “Our collaboration with Qtrax will give us great consumer insight and help us gauge the boundaries between sampling and purchasing music,” he said.
Mike Goodman, an analyst at Yankee Group, said that the new incarnation of Qtrax was not all that different from the new, current incarnation of Napster. “Napster is similarly an ad-supported service,” he said, “but it uses a centralized server rather than pure P2P. P2P is a more efficient mechanism, in that it leverages users to distribute product.” Qtrax plans to launch a test version in the U.S. in the third quarter of this year. However, Allan Klepfisz, president and chief executive of Qtrax’s parent company Brilliant Technologies, has said Qtrax will not officially launch until other major music companies, including Vivendi’s Universal Music, Sony BMG, and Warner Music, are on board. In February, LTDnetwork announced an arrangement with the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers for distribution of copyright royalties from Qtrax to music rightsholders. LTDnetwork, a subsidiary of Brilliant Technologies, develops software for online retail, advertising, media, and marketing. New York-based Brilliant Technologies purchased LTDnetwork more than a year ago. Qtrax originally launched in 2002, but LTDnetwork soon closed it rather than face the kinds of legal problems P2P music networks were experiencing at the time. |
