ATO Records and DropCards Welcome College Students Back to School With Free Music Downloads

PARSIPPANY, NJ (DropCards) - Founded by Dave Matthews, According To Our Records (ATO Records) wanted to spread the word about their current and upcoming releases to college students, and enlisted the help of digital download company DropCards to do so.

"The download cards were an experiment for us, and we're excited to see the outcome. The music industry is changing fast, and DropCards may be ahead of the curve with their personalized download card system," said Brandon Dufour of ATO Records.

The twenty-five thousand ATO Records DropCards are currently being used as a gift with purchase in college bookstores across the nation. They feature music downloads from David Gray, Government Mule, Jem, Ben Kweller, Gomez, Mike Doughty, My Morning Jacket, North Mississippi Allstars, Rodrigo y Gabriela, Patty Griffin, The Whigs and Vusi Mahlasela. Street teams are also distributing the DropCards during the Barenaked Ladies and Gomez tours.

The ATO Records DropCards are the size of a credit card, and feature the label's logo on the front, and a link on the back directing fans to the custom website where they can download music, view artist photos, links and biography. All of this is accessible only through an exclusive PIN found on the DropCard.

Throughout the summer, several labels have decided to utilize DropCards in their marketing mix and street team promotion. The DropCards summer roster includes Atlantic Records, Anodyne Records, Blackheart Records Group and Vagrant Records.