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BMI Acquires Song Identification Technology from U.K.-Based Shazam

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on August 30, 2005 - 4:57am.
New York -- BMI, the performing rights organization that represents 300,000 songwriters and 6.5 million works, announced on Tuesday that it has acquired the technology assets of Shazam Entertainment, a developer of mobile music recognition technology. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed. Terms of the deal call for Landmark Digital Services, a new subsidiary of BMI, to acquire the music recognition technology from U.K.-based Shazam -- which it will rename BlueArrow. Shazam will receive a worldwide exclusive license from Landmark to continue offering the music recognition technology to consumers; Shazam's service lets users dial a number, hold their cell phones up to a speaker playing music, and receive a message sent to their phones containing the artist and song title of the song being played. BMI plans to use the BlueArrow technology to identify members' songs played on various media, including radio and TV, to track and process royalty payments. "Pattern recognition technology is the single most promising way to identify music performed on today's media and further into the digital future," said BMI president and CEO Del Bryant. "BlueArrow technology will give us a powerful new tool for the identification of music played on radio, television and in digital media."
tags: U.K | BMI | Song Identification Technology | Shazam |

Coca-Cola, Shazam Partner on U.K. Digital Song and Ringtone Giveaway

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on May 19, 2005 - 7:37am.
London -- Coca-Cola announced that it has partnered with Shazam Entertainment, a developer of mobile music recognition technology, on a two-month promotion that will give away 5,000 ringtones or full-song downloads each day. Consumers can call a special number and hold their cell phone near an audio source, which will then reply with a text message listing the artist and name of the song. The message will also relay whether the consumer has "won" a ringtone or full-song download of the track, or else provide a link to purchase it via mobile phone. Entrants at MyCokeMusic.com will receive one free "CokeTag," which counts as a single call to Shazam's mobile music identification service; additional CokeTags will be available for 25 pence (46 cents) each, rising to 50 pence (92 cents) following the conclusion of the promotion. Ringtones and downloads purchased from MyCokeMusic.com will cost about $2.50.
tags: U.K | Ringtone | Musics | Coca-Cola | Shazam |

Mobile Music Recognition Firm Shazam Raises $5 Million

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on March 25, 2004 - 4:18am.
London -- U.K.-based mobile music-recognition company Shazam Entertainment announced that it has received a further $5 million in a funding round led by new investor DN Capital and IDG Ventures Europe, an investor from two earlier rounds. As part of the investment, Shazam said DN Capital's Nenad Marovac would join the company's board of directors. "Shazam has leapt forward in the past 12 months, and to capitalise on the remarkable progress in establishing our music recognition services worldwide, we decided to raise additional funds to accelerate growth further," said CEO Jerry Roest. The company said the funding would also be used for expansion into non-consumer areas like broadcast monitoring, royalty tracking and information services for the music industry. Just last April, the company secured more than 6 million euro ($7.3 million) in a funding round led by IDG Ventures Europe and Lynx Capital Ventures.
tags: Mobile | VC | Musics | Shazam |

Mobile Music Recognition Firm Shazam Raises $5 Million

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on March 24, 2004 - 5:17am.
London -- U.K.-based mobile music-recognition company Shazam Entertainment announced that it has received a further $5 million in a funding round led by new investor DN Capital and IDG Ventures Europe, an investor from two earlier rounds. As part of the investment, Shazam said DN Capital's Nenad Marovac would join the company's board of directors. "Shazam has leapt forward in the past 12 months, and to capitalise on the remarkable progress in establishing our music recognition services worldwide, we decided to raise additional funds to accelerate growth further," said CEO Jerry Roest. The company said the funding would also be used for expansion into non-consumer areas like broadcast monitoring, royalty tracking and information services for the music industry. Just last April, the company secured more than 6 million euro ($7.3 million) in a funding round led by IDG Ventures Europe and Lynx Capital Ventures.
tags: Mobile | Music | Shazam | Mobile Music Recognition |

Cell Phone Song ID Technology Firm Shazam Raises $6.6 Million

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on April 25, 2003 - 10:01am.
London -- Shazam Entertainment, a developer of technology that lets users identify songs by playing them through a cell phone, announced that it has raised $6.6 million in its second round of venture capital financing. IDG Ventures Europe led the investment round, which also included participation from IDG Ventures China and Lynx New Media. London-based Shazam already has relationships with a number of major and independent record labels for the service, as well as with mobile carriers and retailers including Vodafone (UK & Germany), Orange, T-Mobile, O2, Virgin Mobile and Amazon.com.
tags: VC | Cell Phone | Musics | Shazam | ID |