Easy-to-use digital music store offers over 3 million DRM-free songs with top-selling albums from just £3
December 3, 2008, London: Amazon.co.uk today launched Amazon MP3 – the simple-to-use digital music store offering over 3 million DRM-free (Digital Rights Management) songs which will work on any MP3 player including the iPod™- with top-selling albums from just £3 and individual songs from 59p.
Amazon MP3 has all the convenience, choice and value that customers have come to expect from Amazon.co.uk. Using the ‘Amazon Downloader’, customers can automatically transfer DRM-free songs in a matter of seconds to their computer or music libraries such as iTunes and Windows Media Player.
Amazon MP3’s growing selection of over 3 million songs covers every genre and includes all four major labels – SonyBMG, Universal Music, EMI Music and Warner Music –and leading independents such as Cooking Vinyl, Harmonia Mundi, Beggars Banquet, The Orchard, Concord and Ioda. The selection covers every genre from pop and folk to classical, from blues and jazz to hip-hop and from dance and techno to rock and roll, with tens of thousands of tracks being added every day.
At launch, Amazon MP3 features a large selection of best-selling albums priced at just £3, including some of this year’s biggest and most influential releases, such as ‘Only By The Night’ by Kings of Leon, Take That’s ‘The Circus’ and ’The Seldom Seen Kid’ by Elbow. There’s also a selection of classics to grace anyone’s record collection, including ‘Blue’ by Joni Mitchell, Led Zeppelin’s ‘IV’ and Kanye West’s ‘Graduation’.
Greg Greeley, Vice-President of Amazon EU Retail said: “We’re excited to provide our UK customers with more ways to discover and enjoy great music. In addition to the millions of low-priced CDs available in our music store, Amazon MP3 now provides a vast selection of DRM-free albums and songs across every genre you can think of, ready to enjoy in seconds”
He added: “With some of this Christmas’ biggest albums from £3, it’s a great opportunity for customers to experience the quality, choice and convenience of Amazon MP3”
Ged Doherty, Chairman and CEO, Sony BMG Music Entertainment UK said: “Amazon’s music services in the US have attracted new digital music consumers and helped grow the digital market. We have high hopes that it will have the same impact in the UK. Amazon are an excellent and well trusted retailer, this new store can only be good for UK music.”
Matthew Crosswaite, SVP, EMI Music’s sales and commercial development, UK and Ireland said: "Amazon are a valued global partner who put the consumer experience first. We're excited about their DRM-free store coming to the UK and we believe that this will be a very positive development for digital music buyers in Britain."
Alan Young, SVP, Commercial and Operations, Warner Music UK said: “The launch of Amazon MP3 in the UK further extends our ability to offer fans an exciting range of flexible and feature-rich digital music experiences from our local and international artists. This partnership is also a powerful new opportunity for us to explore ways of distributing MP3s and physical formats via the same platform.”
Every song and album in the Amazon MP3 music download store is available encoded at 256 kbps to deliver high audio quality. Amazon MP3 customers are free to enjoy their music downloads using any hardware device, including PCs, Macs™, iPods™, Walkmans™, Zens™, iPhones™, RAZRs™, and BlackBerrys™; organize their music using any music management application, such as iTunes(R) or Windows Media Player(TM)and burn songs to CDs for personal use.
For more information and a guide to getting started, please go http://mp3.amazon.co.uk
For further information please contact the Amazon.co.uk press office on 020 8636 9280.
About Amazon.co.uk
Amazon.co.uk opened its virtual doors in October 1998 and strives to be the world’s most customer-centric company, where people can find and discover anything they might want to buy online, and endeavours to offer its customers the lowest possible prices. Amazon.co.uk and other sellers offer millions of unique new, refurbished and used items in categories such as books, movies, music, PC and video games, software, electronics and photo, home and garden, toys and games, baby, shoes, jewellery and watches, health and beauty and sports and leisure.
Amazon and its affiliates operate websites, including www.amazon.com, www.amazon.co.uk, www.amazon.de, www.amazon.co.jp, www.amazon.fr, www.amazon.ca, and the Joyo Amazon websites at www.joyo.cn and www.amazon.cn.
As used herein, "Amazon.com," "we," "our" and similar terms include Amazon.com, Inc., and its subsidiaries, unless the context indicates otherwise.
Forward-looking Statement
This announcement contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Actual results may differ significantly from management's expectations. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that include, among others, risks related to competition, management of growth, new products, services and technologies, potential fluctuations in operating results, international expansion, outcomes of legal proceedings and claims, fulfillment center optimization, seasonality, commercial agreements, acquisitions and strategic transactions, foreign exchange rates, system interruption, significant amount of indebtedness, inventory, government regulation and taxation, payments and fraud. More information about factors that potentially could affect Amazon.com's financial results is included in Amazon.com's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2007, and subsequent filings.