SPRINT TAKES LEAD AS 1ST SPONSOR OF FILE-SHARE SONG
By PETER LAURIA [NYPOST]
July 8, 2007 -- Sprint has signed on as the first company to underwrite a song to be distributed on file-sharing networks, agreeing to embed its logo on copies of tracks from Atlantic Records hip-hop artist Plies, sources told The Post.
The move represents another example of the music industry's evolving view of peer-to-peer networks as a potential new source of revenue instead of the bane of its existence.
Sprint and Atlantic Records are teaming with ArtistDirect's Media Defender division for the initiative, which essentially amounts to an advertising buy for the telecom company.
According to sources familiar with the deal, Media Defender will push 16 million Plies song files embedded with the Sprint logo onto peer-to-peer networks over a three-month period in return for a "substantial six-figure" fee to be divided between Media Defender, Atlantic Records, Plies and his publishing company.
Once embedded, the Sprint logo will be attached to the files forever and will appear alongside Plies' name and the song title on the screen of a desktop computer, iPod, cellphone or any other digital music player.
The vast share of music consumption, particularly for the under 35 set, is done on file-sharing networks. ArtistDirect CEO Jon Diamond said the initiative serves the triple purpose of generating advertising income for record labels, curtailing piracy and allowing brands to associate with key artists to reach a desired demographic.
While Diamond declined to identify Plies as the artist associated with the Sprint deal, saying only that the label and artist will be announced in two weeks, he did add that MediaDefender is currently in talks with a number of major artists and brands and expects to announce similar deals shortly.
According to Steve Yanovsky, a former record industry executive who consults for Mindshare Interactive, which counts Sprint as a client, the deal positions Sprint "as an innovator and will help drive perception of them in the marketplace."
Indeed, Ted Moran, Sprint's director for digital marketing, said part of the reason for doing the deal was to spread the word about the company's music-related initiatives, which include the Sprint Music Store and the availability of online radio station Pandora.com on its phones.
[Via NYPOST]
