Thumplay, a Web site dedicated to your every mobile entertainment desire, announced Tuesday the official launch of a direct-to-mobile (or computer if you choose) MP3 download site. Tracks are 99 cents each or you can pay $9.99 a month for 10 credits with each credit good for one track. Or they can be used for other content on the site.
In general, I don't get too excited about the world having yet another music download site, but since Thumbplay is open to more than just one carrier, works with a ton of mobile devices (basically anything with a data plan), and you're not forced to pay higher per-track prices or a monthly service fee if you don't want to, it deserves a spot in this crowded space.
Besides, from the looks of the catalog (current major labels include Universal Music Group and EMI Music) it seems geared toward getting that one single you heard on the radio and can't get out of your head. An "I must own it now" kind of scenario. Of course since they are MP3s free of DRM you can play them on a ridiculous number of devices as well, not just phones.
(Credit:
Roc-a-fella Records)
With sales for digital singles outpacing CD sales, it's hard to imagine an artist overlooking any avenue of digital distribution and revenue. Yet with the exception of a handful of tracks, American rap icon Jay-Z has resisted releasing his 100-song catalog as ringtones--until last week. That's when most of the remaining tracks streamed into the digital media marketplace. Most. Through August, ten of the artist's smash singles have been earmarked for only one site.
Starting Monday, those hidden hits, including 'Can I Get A', 'IZZO (H.O.V.A.)', and 'Roc Boys (And The Winner Is)', became exclusively available on Thumbplay.com. Thumbplay, a mobile content company with an estimated worth of $400 million, now carries 101 prepackaged Jay-Z ringtones, including the coveted 10 (see the exclusive titles below.)
But will ringtones continue to sell in a hobbled economy? Mitch Rotter, Thumbplay's Vice President of Content Acquisition & Merchandising, thinks they will. Ringtones are about social expression, he said in an interview. To a youth demographic, "they're a fashion accessory," and therefore a worthy buy for teens proving their cool to peers within earshot.
Thumbplay's Jay-Z titles:
1-900-Hustler, The Dynasty: Roc La Familia (2000)
-Can I Get A, Vol. 2: Hard Knock Life (1998)
-Encore, The Black Album (2003)
-Excuse Me Miss, The Blueprint 2: The Gift & The Curse (2002)
-Girls, Girls, Girls, The Blueprint (2001)
-Heart Of The City (Ain't No Love), The Blueprint (2001)
-IZZO (H.O.V.A.), The Blueprint (2001)
-Jigga What, Jigga Who, Vol. 2: Hard Knock Life (1998)
-Roc Boys (And The Winner Is), American Gangster (2007)
-S. Carter, Vol. 3: Life and Times of S. Carter (1999)
Some of my favorite cell phone apps and services are also the simplest. Thumbplay, a major content storage and sales company (coverage), gets that with its latest service for Web-enabled phones, Thumbplay GET.
It's essentially a link request and return service for Thumbplay's content offerings. Users text GET, followed by the artist's name or song title, to Thumbplay's short code, 48000. Seconds later a link is returned through text, which leads to the search results. Users can then click to purchase the download.
Though primarily positioned as a song and ringtone service, Thumbplay GET will also serve some listings for wallpaper and games.
Thumbplay, a sales hub for mobile ringtones, videos, and games, will announce tomorrow at the CTIA conference in San Francisco, California, that it has also become a free database for user-generated content.
Account-holders can upload and store media from either their cell phone or computer to their Thumbplay "locker." From there, they can send images and clips to friends via SMS or e-mail. Users can also download content from fellow Thumplay members for free, and grab code to affix the image on any personal Web page that accepts HTML embedding. Oddly, there doesn't seem to be a way to assimilate another user's contribution into your personal media gallery. UPDATE: They can, however, be stored in a separate folder for favorites.
Thumbplay will also reveal two upcoming Facebook apps, whose presence will complete the circle of what is essentially a free storage and sharing service with some social networking characteristics.
The first of these is Thumbplay Share, which will display photos from your personal locker and automatically update them when you add a new image to Thumbplay.com. Photo Portal does the reverse, allowing users to send photos from Facebook albums to any cell phone.
The apps won't be publicly available until an unspecified date later this week, though Thumbplay's President and CEO, Are Traasdahl, stopped by CNET's San Francisco office to demonstrate. They look pretty effective so far, but more word on that when I get a chance to try them out in the wild.
- prev
- 1
- next
