Select Artists To Be Equipped with ShoZu-Enabled Phones
BARCELONA, Spain -- Feb. 15, 2007 ShoZu Inc. today announced an agreement with Atlantic Records that will make aggressive use of the mobile channel to advance the label's street marketing efforts. Under the agreement, select bands will be equipped with ShoZu-enabled camera phones that allow one-click uploading of photos and video clips in near-real time for distribution to artist and fan sites, MySpace and other popular online destinations.
This agreement reflects the growing importance of the mobile platform to connect artists with fans. Media companies and other commercial users can access ShoZu's services, including Share-It image uploading as well as 'ZuCasts' consisting of partner promotional or informational content delivered to the handset.
The Atlantic Records agreement follows the label's success in using ShoZu-equipped phones to send New Year's Eve concert footage to YouTube during the Chevrolet-sponsored YouTube New Year's Eve Countdown last month. Participating Atlantic Records artists in that event included Gnarls Barkley in Los Angeles, Panic! At the Disco in New York City, and Scottish singer/songwriter sensation Paolo Nutini from his home country.
"The New Year's Eve Countdown was a milestone in mobile music promotion, but it was a one-time event. This agreement will enable our artists to share video and photos with their fans in a unique and more urgent way. In addition to providing bands the opportunity to deliver a steady stream of content to both phones and other online sources, it provides a framework for community," said Livia Tortella, General Manager and EVP of Marketing and Creative Media, Atlantic Records.
With ShoZu-equipped phones, performing artists can capture and upload backstage proceedings, rehearsals, warmups, pre-scripted skits, tour activities, bus scenes, day-in-the-life images, and a wide variety of other 'you are there' photos and video clips.
The artist content can be posted on artists' own websites or fan sites, sent to their MySpace pages, forwarded to YouTube, embedded in blogs, blasted to an opt-in fan email distribution list, or repurposed as free or paid promotional content created exclusively for the mobile channel. Artists can also receive and reply to fans' comments posted on community sites from their handsets using ShoZu's two-way messaging capabilities.
"Camera phones open up broad new opportunities to connect performers and fans, from uploading and downloading of promotional content to mobile advertising that can sell music, ringtones, wallpaper and concert tickets from the handset, but the main barrier to date has been ease of use," said Jen Grenz, Global Partner Marketing Director for ShoZu. "This agreement with Atlantic Records showcases the benefits of our technology and paves the way for establishing ShoZu as the mobile-enabling provider of choice for the music industry."
About ShoZu
ShoZu is a mobile media service that enables consumer and media companies to interact with customers on their mobile phones through fast, easy exchange of multimedia content and web-based services. The company's patented technology allows consumers to download and upload photos, videos, music, text and other digital content to and from the handset without the need to open a mobile browser, wait for pages to load, interrupt phone calls, start over in the event of a dropped connection, or sync to a PC. Services include innovative ZuCasts that deliver content to the handset automatically, one-click uploading of camera phone images and video clips to community websites and other destinations, and two-way mobile-to-web messaging and interactivity. For more information, visit http://www.shozu.com/aboutus.
About Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records will celebrate its 60th anniversary in 2007. Founded in New York City, the label grew from literally a one-room operation into one of the world's preeminent music companies. Atlantic has released a string of recordings that have had a profound impact on the course of modern music, its rich history including such musical icons as Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin, John Coltrane, and Led Zeppelin. The Atlantic roster today includes many of the world's most popular recording artists, among them Bjork, James Blunt, Tracy Chapman, Phil Collins, Death Cab For Cutie, Missy Elliott, Gnarls Barkley, Jet, Jewel, Juvenile, Kid Rock, Lil' Kim, matchbox twenty, Jason Mraz, Panic! At The Disco, Sean Paul, Pretty Ricky, Rush, Shinedown, Staind, Rob Thomas, T.I., Trick Daddy, Twista, Yusuf, and many more. Visit http://www.atlanticrecords.com for more information.