News

7Digital.com to distribute mp3 downloads from Warner Music International

7digital.com is the first major European download store to offer Warner Music catalogue in an unencrypted format.

More than 80% of 7digital.com’s 3.5million track catalogue is now MP3.

London, 4th March, 2008: Warner Music International (WMI), a division of Warner Music Group (WMG) and 7digital.com, a leading digital media delivery company, today announced that MP3 music audio downloads from Warner Music are now available to 7digital.com customers in the UK, Ireland, Spain, France and Germany. Beginning today, 7digital.com will be the first major European download store to offer Warner Music tracks in the MP3 file format, which is compatible with virtually any digital music device.

In addition, 7digital.com and WMI will work in partnership to offer a range of digital music products such as value-added album bundles that contain additional content. 7digital.com will build and maintain dedicated artist or label pages which Warner Music labels and artists can edit remotely in order to provide fans the latest offerings and artist-related updates.

In celebration of this announcement, 7digital.com today launched a major promotion around Warner Music content, backed by an online marketing campaign. 7digital.com will make selected albums from Warner Music’s world-class repertoire available for a limited period at the price of £5/€6.99.

John Reid, Vice Chairman, WMI & President, Warner Music Europe, said “This deal will offer music fans a new level of flexibility in their use of tracks from our world-renowned artists. We believe that providing consumers with this assurance of interoperability will encourage sales of music downloads and ultimately help the development of new digital music experiences. This agreement will not only enhance 7digital.com’s service and expand our digital footprint but also benefit artists and music fans alike.”

Eric Daugan, Vice President, Digital Business, WMI, said “In 7digital.com we have an agile, innovative and growing partner who will offer us new, improved retail and promotional opportunities across key parts of Western Europe. We look forward to working with them to provide consumers with an even wider choice of content-rich digital products that will further deepen the relationship between our artists and their fans.”

Ben Drury, CEO, 7digital.com, said “7digital.com is excited to be Warner Music's first major partner in Europe to bring MP3s to the marketplace. Our 1.2 million registered customer base has proved to us that MP3s sell very well and MP3 is currently the format of choice for digital media consumers. The addition of Warner Music’s MP3 catalogue to 7digital.com means that over 80% of 7digital.com’s 3.5 million track catalogue is now DRM-free. 7digital.com is committed to becoming the destination for MP3s and we plan to make our entire music catalogue available in DRM-free, high-quality MP3 format by summer 2008.”

Warner Music continues to grow its digital distribution footprint and diversify the services that it delivers to its artists across online and mobile platforms. Warner Music also has strategic partnerships in place that help it reach new audiences around the world including Asia, Latin America, Europe and Africa.

In 2007, 7digital.com saw year-on-year sales grow 188%, with DRM-free MP3 downloads out-selling other digital formats by almost four to one (where MP3 is offered alongside WMA and AAC). In order to meet the increasing demand for DRM-free downloads, 7digital.com is expanding overseas. A recent VC investment of £4.25 million will be used to expand 7digital.com’s offering internationally. - ends -

About Warner Music International: Warner Music International (WMI) is Warner Music Group's global (ex-U.S.) recorded music division that markets and distributes WMG's world-class roster of U.S. and international recording artists through a network of affiliates and licensees in more than 50 countries. With a commitment to developing local talent as well as marketing international superstars, WMI leverages its expertise in each region around the world to attract and cultivate a diverse international artist roster. WMG is a pioneer in delivering music content in new and exciting ways, with a track record of 'firsts' in the digital space.

About 7digital.com: Established in January 2004, 7digital is a leading digital media delivery company offering consumers access to a huge catalogue of legal music and video downloads, competitive prices and promotions, high quality sound and video in various file formats including MP3 through 7digital.com. 7digital enables secure digital media delivery on behalf of record labels, artists, film and TV companies, retail and brand partners.

7digital’s clients include Universal, EMI, British Film Institute, Channel 5, Warner Music, MTV, Sony BMG, Last.fm, and many more. The company has distributed content through over 500 partner sites including Bebo, O2, ITV.com, Last.fm, NME and XFM, and delivered tens of millions of digital products in hundreds of countries.

7digital is a privately held company backed by Balderton Capital and (formerly Benchmark Capital), the venture capital firm behind eBay and other leading technology companies.

Contacts:
Warner Music International: James Steven Warner Music International
Tel: 0207 368 2572
Email: james.steven@warnermusic.com

7digital: Simon Hilliard / Ronan McNern / Victoria Lefroy at Racepoint Group UK (formerly Fuse PR)
Tel: 020 8752 3217 / 06 / 09
Email: 7digitaluk@racepointgroup.com