UCJ announces remove of copy protection

[Stephany]

Hi all,

I suspect that this article will interest some of you.

The World Today: Downloads unlimited
10 November 2007
Coventry Evening Telegraph

The record label behind Katherine Jenkins, Jamie Cullum and Luciano Pavarotti is to remove copy protection from its online catalogue.

The move means all Universal Music Classics and Jazz tracks will be available to download for any MP3 format.

It follows the lead taken by EMI, which announced in April that it was to take all software locks off its digital music sold on sites such as iTunes.

Other artists on the Universal label include Miles Davis, Andrea Bocelli, Diana Krall, Russell Watson, the Fron Male Voice Choir and classical girl group All Angels.

Classics such as Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker and Handel's Water Music will be offered alongside vintage recordings such as Louis Armstrong's What A Wonderful World.

They will be offered free of digital rights management (DRM) for a three-month trial on the www.classicsandjazz.co.uk website.

"The online music market is evolving quickly and we want to explore the way forward thoroughly and responsibly," said the label's managing director, Dickon Stainer.

"By making our entire catalogue available in an open MP3 format, we will have the opportunity to assess the level of demand, the effect on the wider music download market and of course whether we will have a problem with piracy."

Stephany

[Dave]

Hi Stephany and all,

I received a newsletter from ClassicsandJazz UK today and as it explains their actions in more detail, I will post it here. I believe this is an important step forward in downloads policy and I hope that those of us who do occasionally download will support them (and EMI who started it, among the major record companies). ClassicsandJazz is, of course, owned by Universal, just like Hayley's record company of Decca, therefore, all Hayley's download releases in the UK can now be purchased unrestricted in "high quality" mp3 format - there are nine different versions of Hayley's three International albums available there including a re-ordered version of the Pure UK special edition and "Last Rose of Summer" + "Jekyll" on one Treasure version.

Their download quality is excellent - it is significantly better than iTunes and I would be surprised if any of us could tell the difference between them and an original CD, when played through computers and 99% of (or any) home hi-fi equipment. I know they are already exploring the possibility of offering album artwork with their downloads in the future. I hope the trial succeeds.

Classicsandjazz.co.uk goes MP3 - Newsletter
11 Nov 2007

Classicsandjazz.co.uk is exploring consumer demand for DRM-free open MP3s - which can be played on a full range of devices including dedicated MP3 players, mobile phones and iPods - via a trial that went live this week.

Some of you reading this email will be regular users of www.classicsandjazz.co.uk, others of you may have been unable to use the store due to having a Mac or owning a portable music player that wasn't compatible with the store, like an iPod or Walkman. Now the store is fully operational with Macs and all portable devices. So there is nothing stopping you using and enjoying the UK's best Classical and Jazz digital store. The 'Dress Circle' is the superior membership level to the store in which you can access MP3 and WMA downloads side by side. All you need to do to access this area is sign up and tick the 'Dress Circle' box - there are no catches. You will also be ab le to earn loyalty points by purchasing MP3 content in the 'Dress Circle'. Every 'Dress Circle' MP3 album purchased is worth 50 points and if you recommend an album to a friend who then goes on to purchase the album you earn 100 points. 500 points can be exchanged for GBP 5 off future album purchases.

If you are an existing member then to access 'Dress Circle' all you need to do is upgrade your existing membership by clicking through to the 'Dress Circle' section and updating your account details by ticking the 'Dress Circle' box. If you wish to upgrade your previously bought albums to MP3, then you can do completely FREE, just visit the 'My Music' section once signed up to 'Dress Circle'.

Many of you have also expressed an interest in talking to other Classical and Jazz enthusiasts like yourselves, so we have launched our new easy to use forum/message board. Just Click Here to visit and let us know what you think

And remember, the downloads from www.classicsandjazz.co.uk have a higher bit-rate than those from most music download sites (320K Stereo files, versus the standard 128K Stereo files). With high quality interoperable downloads especially for Classical and Jazz fans why go elsewhere for downloads?

So what are you waiting for?

The one-stop-shop for all your Classical and Jazz needs go to www.classicsandjazz.co.uk TODAY.

There are some similar types of thread to this a few pages back in the Other Music board, so I will move this one there to join them.

Cheers, Dave