Fizzy Logic

Pepsi to change digital music for the better

During Superbowl 2008 next February, Pepsi in the US plan to launch a major music promotion that could deal a final fatal blow to ill-fated Digital Rights Management, the music industry practice that is often credited with having alienated customers, and given iTunes a huge boost when it launched in 2001.

In conjunction with Amazon.com’s DRM-free music download service, Pepsi will announce a promotion offering a free MP3 download for every five bottle tops collected. Here comes the science: since Amazon’s service has no digital rights encoded data, any major record label still using DRM will be unable to take part, and so will lose out on this potentially huge music promotion next year.

This news comes in tandem with US Asda-owners Wal-Mart having begun a pressure campaign on SonyBMG and Warner to remove DRM from their music in order to sell it on Wal-Mart’s own digital download service, and surely gives a final curtain for Digital Rights Management for the coming year.

Issue #52 - Very Bro-some

Featuring Panama Kings, ASIWYFA, an investigation into DIY touring, details of what over 25 of the finest NI bands are up to in 2009 and much more.