SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE via COLLEGIATE PRESSWIRE)--Apr 2, 2004--Amid the ongoing controversy about music downloading, a Seattle company is offering a new program that lets music fans quickly put together a customized, legal music download web site. Visitors can download songs and play them three times for free before being asked to buy them. The site-owner earns 20% of all sales, plus a share of pass-along sales.
Do-it-yourself online music stores are based on Weed(SM) file-sharing technology, from Shared Media Licensing, Inc. (''SML''). Weed tracks the on-line distribution of files and allocates payments from purchases. All Weed files can be freely shared over the Internet.
Weed offers simple ''starter kits'' to help site owners stock their virtual shelves. SML President John Beezer says, ''Weed starter kits are aimed at anybody with a web site that gets regular traffic, who would like to offer some great new music to their visitors.''
Starter kits take advantage of the free $5 credited to every new Weed account. Each kit consists of a compressed ZIP file containing several songs chosen by one of SML`s Independent Content Providers. SML offers dozens of starter kits on their web site to help people get started.
Says Beezer: ''You can download the files and if you like them, buy them in a few minutes with your free $5; then simply post them on your web site and encourage your visitors to try them. When they buy, you earn 20%. When they share the files with friends who buy them, you earn a share of those sales too. If you want to expand your offerings, there are thousands of amazing songs available in practically every style of music. Just buy the ones you think your visitors will like and add them to your inventory.''
Beezer says that Weed`s decentralized retailing strategy benefits artists and fans alike. ''A lot of people don`t have time to search the Internet for new music. But if they trust a particular site owner`s taste, they`ll come back often to hear what`s new and buy the titles they like. And with Weed files, fans know the artist is being fairly compensated because rightsholders get 50% of every sale.''
Details on the free program are available at www.weedshare.com/web/starter.html.
SML`s home page is at www.weedshare.com, and complete press information is at www.weedshare.com/web/press.html.
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