Would you watch a commercial for a free song? The folks at FreeAllMusic are hoping the answer is yes, and are presenting such a concept right now in Beta mode. The new music site will allow users to download songs free and legally. In order to download a song, users much first watch a 15-18 commercial video from one of the site’s sponsors. The plan gets more intricate because the advertisements are user-generated, meaning that the user gets to pick which ad they want to watch, giving partnering advertisers a direct snapshot of the appeal of their product. For example:
FreeAllMusic just announced a deal with Universal Music Group, giving the site access to UMG’s catalog including music from Lady Gaga, Kanye West, etc… It also has deals with advertisers such as Coca-Cola, Warner Bros, Zappos, and Lionsgate. So, let’s say that I want to download “Spaceship” by Kanye West. I must watch an ad to get the song, and am given the choice of watching an ad about new Coca-Cola products or a new film from Lionsgate. I prefer movies to soda, so I watch a Lionsgate commercial. Since their advertisement was selected, Lionsgate pays for my download, I get the song, and can do it again with another one… Users are allowed up to 20 downloads a month, and FreeAllMusic is currently testing the site with beta-users before opening it up to the general public. It announced the Universal deal earlier this week, and is said to have another major label on board.
But will this work?
via Tech Crunch