BEIJING — In the latest effort to undermine the market for pirated music downloads in China, an indie U.S. distributor has linked up with a Chinese partner to offer more than 1 million songs for 3 cents each online.
San Francisco-based indie IODA has linked up with ringtone distributor R2G to form Wawawa Music Store site, which will allow customers in China to subscribe to download up to 88 MP3s a month for 20 yuan $3).
Pitching the downloads at a relatively low rate is aimed at encouraging Chinese customers — 85% of whom listen to music online — to pay for legitimate music in a country where song files from top artists are available free on sites like Baidu.com.
Wawawa becomes China’s largest digital music store with the launch of the partnership and it is the first time foreign independents have had a legal way into China’s growing market for downloads.
The service is created exclusively for mainland Chinese consumers and all the songs are delivered in DRM-free mp3 format via a monthly subscription plan; all downloads are permanently owned by the customer — even beyond their subscription period.
The service is also aimed at being easy for the 40% of Chinese webizens who use Internet cafés to download music, as the service allows subscribers to stream from any location with an Internet connection.
"Despite the undeniable potential of the Chinese market, it remains to be seen how the music industry can successfully capture the opportunity," said Kevin Arnold, founder and CEO of the San Francisco-based IODA.
"Wawawa opens this huge new market to the independent sector for the first time with an offering that we believe is the right combination of convenience, price, and content selection for the increasingly adventurous Chinese music fan."
IODA stands for Independent Online Distribution Alliance and it is a digital clearing house for artists who haven't signed with the major labels, including Sony BMG, EMI Group, Warner Music Group Corp. or Universal Music Group.
Among the recordings on offer will be tracks by Bob Marley & the Wailers, David Byrne, Thurston Moore, Cake and the San Francisco Symphony.
(The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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