FRANKLIN, TN (PassAlong Networks) - Speakerheart, a division of PassAlong Networks, and M-Audio, a business unit of Avid Technology, Inc., today announced a partnership that will combine Speakerheart's self-publishing capabilities and M-Audio's Session audio creation software to synthesize the create, upload and publish process for artists. The companies also announced that
Barenaked Ladies is the first band to utilize this new service and export music from Session into Speakerheart.
"We're no longer tied up with making typical, 12-song albums," said Terry McBride, CEO of Nettwerk Music Group "With the release of BNL's last album, fans had the ability to customize tracks straight off the board into their own personal mixes, and now our bands have the ability to quickly create and release remixes like alternative, acoustic, even dance, for their fans to enjoy. With a pairing as simple as Session and Speakerheart, it's easy to mix, export and publish."
Speakerheart, which will launch in early 2007, is a new service that enables independent artists to promote and sell their music online. M-Audio provides cutting edge technology via easy-to-use, affordable products that allow independent musicians to create, perform and record with mobile hardware and software solutions. The partnership blends the two services to create a unified self-publishing platform.
"This partnership with M-Audio allows Speakerheart to extend its capabilities and truly become a creation-to-commerce service," said Jozef Nuyens, Speakerheart chairman and co-founder of PassAlong Networks. "It's now possible for any artist, songwriter or band to start at the very beginning of the music-making process and create a management and marketing portfolio complete with albums, ringtones and storefronts."
Speakerheart features an intuitive self-uploading toolset, which allows artists to upload their own music, create customized track samples and ringtones, set their own prices and sell it all side-by-side in custom storefronts. Additionally, artists may access sales reports in real time and receive monthly payments for their sales through the simplicity and security of PayPal.
Speakerheart will be integrated directly into Session, M-Audio's make-music-now software for PCs. Accompanied with an audio interface such as M-Audio's Fast Track USB, artists have the ability to record compositions and instantly publish them to their own online storefront within Speakerheart. Through this integration, artists have the opportunity to create a new Speakerheart account or designate an existing account within Session to which master mixes can be directly exported. Once published to the Web, artists will be able to edit the metadata of the exported tracks and offer their master mixes instantly as MP3s or ringtones, either as giveaways or for sale.
"Our partnership with PassAlong creates a true industry first," said Tony McCall, M-Audio's VP of Consumer Sales. "By combining our services we are establishing a creation-to-commerce solution that takes artist empowerment to an entirely new level."
