AT&T subsidiary a2b music’s online music delivery system now features what the company is billing as a breakthrough application in direct-to-consumer music marketing on the Internet.
The new a2b MAIL feature is designed to allow high quality music to be directly embedded into any standard e-mail communication so that artists, record companies and music retailers can alert fans to the latest releases and simultaneously provide them with audio samples.
AT&T said a2b MAIL will require no downloads, plug-ins, audio streaming technology, or hyperlinking. A mini-a2b music client player is embedded into the actual e-mail message. The end user simply opens it like any normal mail, clicks a button, and 12-15 seconds of audio plays.
A mouse click on the integrated album graphic automatically links to the artist, record company or music retailer’s Web site for more information.
AT&T is working with BMG Entertainment which will deliver its first mass communication of a2b MAIL to the consumer databases of each of its genre-based Web sites–www.bugjuice.com (alternative and rock
music), www.peeps.com (urban music) and
www.twangthis.com (country music)–on
July 13th.