EMI takes a dip into digital music

EMI IS ALL set to launch its new music website today which it hopes will stand out from the rest by offering a service which (it says) will "bring the music lover closer to the music".

At the moment the site’s purpose is all a bit vague, as it seems to be some kind of experiment into the new digital platforms and how these can be utilised in bringing users new artists as well as favourites.

Although this idea may take off, the site appears to be a bit on the plain side, and is still in beta stage. We’re not sure why EMI have decided to launch the site today, as users can’t actually buy or download anything yet.

Alex Haar, Vice President of Digital Special Projects at EMI Music said, "EMI.com is designed to be a learning lab. It will help us gain even more knowledge about consumers' preferences and choices. Those insights will be invaluable to our artists, helping them respond to fans in a more relevant way.”

So basically, for the time being anyone adding themselves to the site is involved in this experiment, and won’t get much in return until the site is properly up and running. Although this is quite annoying, EMI assures us that it will be using user comments and profiles to “better test and learn from the consumer experience”.

When complete, EMI.com should house a range of information about EMI artists and include music, videos and biographies as well as the option to create playlists. It is also hinted that there will be downloads available in the future.

This is, of course, not that original as a lot of the features are available on other sites and aren’t restricted to EMI's roster. However there will be a discover feature on the site which is aimed at giving the user tailored music recommendations, by entering artists' names, including those of non-EMI artists.µ

L'Inq
EMI