EMERYVILLE, CA. (Concept Communications) -Gracenote, a global leader in digital media technology and services, today announced it has signed agreements to license song lyrics from Warner/Chappell Music, the award-winning publishing arm of Warner
Music Group (NYSE: WMG) and EMI
Music Publishing, the world's number-one music publisher, as well as leading independent publisher ABKCO Music, Inc., The
Bob Dylan Music Company, Disney
Music Publishing, Ice Nine Publishing, and Windswept Holdings, bringing the rights for hundreds of thousands of new song lyrics to the Gracenote Lyrics catalog. These latest agreements mean that Gracenote has completed licenses with all five major music publishers, and bring the total of participating publishers to more than 80—furthering Gracenote's plan to bring legal, accurate song lyrics to consumers.
Major music publishers BMG Music Publishing, EMI Music Publishing, Sony/ATV Music Publishing, Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner/Chappell Music and dozens of independent music publishers have joined the Gracenote Lyrics program since its inception in July 2006. These licenses pave the way for the first legal mass commercial use of lyrics, which is an important step in enhancing the consumer digital music experience, while protecting the rights of songwriters and music publishers.
Gracenote expects the first publicly-available lyric service to launch in early 2007, enabling digital music retailers, mobile providers, search engines, music portals, and consumer electronics manufacturers to offer legal access to an accurate and comprehensive lyrics catalog. The service will initially be available in North America.
'Through relationships with the world's leading music publishers, and even individual songwriters, Gracenote is opening the door to the availability of the most comprehensive database of song lyrics ever compiled,' said Craig Palmer, CEO of Gracenote. 'We are thrilled to have these new publishers join the Gracenote Lyrics program and to continue working on compelling new products and services that will deliver lyrics to millions of consumers.'
Before the announcement of the Gracenote Lyrics program, consumers' access to song lyrics was largely through unauthorized and unlicensed sources. In developing a comprehensive and authorized lyrics catalog, Gracenote and its partners will deliver advanced search capabilities and integration of lyrics throughout music services, adding tremendous value to these services and overall consumer experience.
'This is a landmark deal and we are pleased to be at the forefront of opening legal lyrics to millions of consumers worldwide,' said Roger Faxon, co-CEO, EMI Music Publishing. 'We look forward to working with Gracenote to develop new products and services that will open up new lyric opportunities for consumers.'
'Warner/Chappell is a leader in the identification and licensing of new opportunities in the digital marketplace,' said Richard Blackstone, chairman and CEO, Warner/Chappell Music. 'We are delighted to license the works of our leading roster of songwriters to Gracenote so that music fans now have a convenient, legal and reliable source for accurate song lyrics while our songwriters are fairly compensated and recognized for the use of their works.'
As part of the licensing program, independent publishers and songwriters can register online for Gracenote's publisher program and have their lyrics made available through the Gracenote service. This is a breakthrough program, especially for smaller organizations and individual artists who can now participate alongside larger publishers to make their songs available to millions of fans and be properly compensated for their use. Music publishers can visit the Gracenote Lyrics website at www.gracenote.com/lyrics for more information and to enroll in the program.
