NexTune Bridges The Digital Rights Gap Between The Music Industry and Technology

NexTune Bridges The Digital Rights Gap Between The Music Industry and Technology

REDMOND, Wash., Feb. 12 /PRNewswire/ -- NexTune, Inc. today announced the release of version 2.4 of its music playlist software. Unlike any other music management software available, NexTune bridges the gap between the DRM (Digital Rights Management) wars now fueling the debate and legitimacy of download digital music. "The various DRM schemes from Apple, Microsoft and Sony coupled with incompatible digital media devices and software have the music consumer confused and the music industry fragmented," says Michael DuKane, president and CEO of NexTune, Inc.

(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20070129/SFM088LOGO )

Mr. DuKane explains, "US music sales are fragmented between new CD sales, digital download sales, and the much ignored used CD market. We estimate the used CD market today at over 1.2 billion dollars and growing. The decline in all sales of music, if the used CD market is also taken into account, is not nearly as significant as being reported."

NexTune(TM) is the only music software on the world music stage, which brings together and resolves every aspect of this fragmentation with a single application. "NexTune puts all the pieces of this puzzle together and provides a complete user experience, states Mr. DuKane. "For example, we've brought both DRM technologies into a single application, a major first. We have turned the new and used retailing of physical CDs into a desktop application experience, and our digital music download store will soon be incorporated into this same application. Having all these technologies and music marketing opportunities in a single consumer software experience is an incredible offering. If NexTune software stopped here, that alone would be incredible, but the most valuable aspect of the NexTune software is our patent pending NexTune play listing and music recognition system."

NexTune is the only software system that actually "recognizes" the characteristics of music and professionally positions each song to provide the best possible listening experience. This technology is the future of the digital music experience, claims Mr. DuKane. "NexTune's unique value is not only in its ability to transparently consolidate DRM technologies for the music consumer, our patent pending technology gives the consumer the power to create professional play lists based on how they tag their music. NexTune software automatically positions a user's song selections into ascending tempos and blends the playback of those songs based on where each song is within the play list. This feature stands above all other features when it comes to the users listening experience as it leads the way to the entire future of digital music. This capability has not yet reached the awareness level of an industry preoccupied with DRM, but it will soon become the "holy grail" to the digital music consumer."

NexTune announced its first public release on January 22, 2007 and has been on a fast track with enhancements and upgrades. NexTune will release version 3.0 next month to include portable device compatibility with the most popular portable media players including the iPod. Mr. DuKane's vision eliminates the confusion surrounding DRM by incorporating all the various technologies into a single application. He states, "There's a lot of misinformation being bantered about. We are now offering protected digital music and full interoperability between devices to achieve the best possible consumer experience. NexTune is the proof that this is possible."

About Michael DuKane:

Michael DuKane's career encompasses 30-years in the business music and music video industry. In 1982 he founded Sight & Sound Entertainment which served over 7,000 retail locations throughout the US including Nordstrom, Sears, JC Penny, Federated stores and Footlocker with music video programming. During his 17 years as CEO of Sight & Sound he established music video licensing rights with all the major music labels and independents. He established music video performance licensing rights with ASCAP and BMI and he developed the first proprietary video playback system for the public performance of music video. After Sight & Sound merged with AEI Music in 1999 Mr. DuKane served as AEI Music's Senior Vice President of New Media Strategies until 2001 where he developed their Profusion Digital Music services. From 2001 until 2003 he was Executive Consultant to DMX Music, Inc. and Play Network Inc. He founded NexTune in 2004 and serves as its CEO.

About NexTune, Inc.

NexTune, Inc. is a music marketing company leveraging technology to improve the personal music experience. NexTune provides music retailers with a new model for distribution; record labels the opportunity to increase revenues with its new and used CD tracking system; and music consumers with a complete music management, playlisting, and programming experience.

Contact:
Geoff Meagher
NexTune, Inc.
Sales@NexTune.com

Photo: NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20070129/SFM088LOGO
AP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.org/
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
Source: NexTune, Inc.

CONTACT: Geoff Meagher of NexTune, Inc., Sales@NexTune.com

Web site: http://www.nextune.net/

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