Qtrax launches free music service

A fully legal, free, ad-supported peer-to-peer (P2P) music-sharing service has been launched online, claiming to offer members access to 25 million tracks.

But the big four record labels - Sony BMG, Warner, Universal and EMI - have all denied that their back catalogues will be available on Qtrax, directly contradicting claims made by the people behind the new start-up.

This puts the figure of 25 million tracks in serious doubt.

Qtrax is proposing that it will pay royalties to the artists whose music is downloaded and where the ownership of copyright is uncertain, the money will be collected and only released when ownership is claimed.

There is also a blacklist in place - if any rights holders object to sharing their music for free then they can make it unavailable.

The system is a P2P network where members download tracks from the libraries of other members, similar to BitTorrent, rather than downloading from central servers in the iTunes style.

All the music comes with DRM (digital rights management) technology built in. The DRM system used belongs to Microsoft, and is currently incompatible with iPods. However, QTrax said it was well on the way to overcoming this problem.

A version for Macs should be available by 18 March, according to the company.

Mark Mulligan, analyst at Jupiter Research, predicted a bright future for the Qtrax service.

"I consider Qtrax to have the potential to be a major player in the ad-supported download space. They’ve taken a long time to get to this stage, largely due to the running around they’ve been doing behind the scenes with rights holders.

"What sets Qtrax apart are the ability to search P2P networks to find the music (a recognition that the target consumers need to be found in their natural habitat) and, crucially, it offers portability," Mulligan said.

However, he was critical of the way Qtrax announced the news before the ink had dried on any contracts.

"It's a real shame that Qtrax decided to play their hand this way. They have a potentially groundbreaking consumer proposition and they just need to have patience to work with the labels, who are having to contemplate radical changes to their way of doing business. Qtrax needs to keep the labels onside if it is to stand any chance of success," said Mulligan.

Recently, Last.fm announced that it was offering free music to anyone anywhere in the world, though it would be streamed over the web rather than downloadable, and individuals were limited to just three plays of each track.

http://qtrax.com
www.jupiterresearch.com