INSTANT messaging platform Mxit, which is 30% owned by media company Naspers, will begin marketing and distributing local music artists at the end of this month, with the view of taking on the industry with its own label soon.<\/p>\n
In a bid to keep its 5,8-million users entertained for longer, Mxit will host a platform in which unsigned local artists can upload their music for other users to download for free, similar to the global phenomenon MySpace.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe entire platform is free \u2014 it is intended to be used as a platform for potential new artists to promote themselves to our local users as well as internationally,\u201d said Mxit Lifestyle GM Paul Stemmet.<\/p>\n
The move follows news that cellphone operator Vodacom will soon make its own music platform, MusicStation, available to its subscribers, by agreement with UK company Omnifone. A monthly fee of R25 will give Vodacom users unlimited access to download songs by local and international artists.<\/p>\n
While Mxit Music, as it will be called, is not a retail offering as yet, Stemmet has confirmed that the company is in talks with \u201cmajor international labels\u201d to launch its own version, in which users would be able to download their favourite songs for a small fee.<\/p>\n
Since joining Naspers, the company has focused more on advertising as a revenue stream, as opposed to the credit-based retail system (Mxit Moola) through which entertainment products can be bought.<\/p>\n
Social network offerings such as MySpace, YouTube and Facebook have shown that the youth are willing to accept amateur quality content as entertainment.<\/p>\n
But Stemmet said Mxit Music would use a filtering system to draw out better quality recordings of talent and rank them above poorer, amateur quality ones.<\/p>\n
He said a voting poll would determine the top bands and every three months the winners would be offered a recording contract through Mxit\u2019s associated partners, under Mxit\u2019s own label.<\/p>\n
He said the company planned to launch its own TV station \u201cearly next year\u201d called Mxit.tv on its sister company MultiChoice\u2019s DStv platform. He said the \u201csigned\u201d new performers would be punted further on this medium.<\/p>\n
When asked whether Mxit saw itself as aggressively taking on larger record labels, Stemmet said that \u201cat this point we are dipping our toes in the water to get a feel\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are motivated by what users want and users want to be entertained,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n