REDMOND, Wash., and MORRISTOWN, N.J., Jan. 26, 2000 — Microsoft Corp. and Music.com Inc. today announced that Music.com has chosen Microsoft® Windows Media TM Technologies as the preferred format for online music distribution on its popular Music.com Web site.
Launched in October 1998, Music.com TM is an international destination for a wide range of music enthusiasts, with more than 1.5 million unique visitors per month. The interactive Web site offers downloadable music in all genres as well as an Internet radio tuner, video clips, music news, chat rooms, auctions and links to other sites.
“Building out our technology capabilities is paramount to providing the best consumer experience on Music.com,”
said Adam Somers, senior vice president of partnerships at Music.com.
“Windows Media provides the mission-critical reliability and quality our users are demanding and will help us become an indispensable online destination for all music lovers.”
The news comes on the heels of a ZD Labs study published Jan. 13 that shows that audio files in the Windows Media format sound more like CD-quality audio in half the size of MP3. In addition, study participants overwhelmingly chose Windows Media over MP3 for the quality of live audio streaming at 32 Kbps and 64 Kbps.
“With Windows Media, music comes out sounding the way it was meant to,”
added Ted Cohen, a Music.com board member.
“People want an emotional experience with their music, not a technology experience, and the quality of Windows Media makes the technology transparent.”
“Music.com has built a powerful site in a very short time, with music for every taste,”
said Will Poole, general manager of the Digital Media Division at Microsoft.
“Now, with Windows Media, its customers will get the high quality they demand in the music they love.”
About Music.com
Music.com is an Internet company located at http://www.music.com/ . Music.com, along with its business partners, operates an Internet site providing aggregator and gateway services to the consumer and professional music industry.
About Windows Media
Windows Media is the leading digital media platform, providing consumers, content providers, solution providers, software developers and corporations with unmatched audio and video quality. Windows Media Technologies, which includes Windows Media Player, Windows Media Services, Windows Media Tools and the Windows Media SDK, is available for free* download at http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/ . The Windows Media Player is the fastest growing media player. More than 50 million copies have been downloaded to date — growing by more than one every second.
About Microsoft
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq
“MSFT”
) is the worldwide leader in software for personal and business computing. The company offers a wide range of products and services designed to empower people through great software — any time, any place and on any device.
*Connect-time charges may apply.
Microsoft and Windows Media are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries.
Music.com is a trademark of Music.com Inc.
The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.
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