Music publisher EMI has agreed to license music video content to Gotuit, a Massashusetts-based company which provides content for on-demand video services for cable operators Time Warner and Comcast. In addition, the EMI music videos will be available for free viewing via the Gotuit broadband video channel Web site.
EMI is home to many top-drawer music performers, including Chingy, Coldplay, Gorillaz, Ice Cube, Korn, Norah Jones, and (of course) The Beatles, with sub-labels including Capitol, Blue Note, Astralwerks, Parlophone, and Virgin.
“As EMI continues to move aggressively in the digital arena, it’s important that we maintain high standards for delivering any of our artists’ content. Gotuit offers viewers an exciting and high-quality way to enjoy our artists’ videos. They’re a valuable new channel for fans to connect with our artists’ music and creative vision,” said David Munns, Chairman and CEO, EMI Music North America, in a statement. “Gotuit is also providing EMI and its artists a great, new revenue stream that allows us to monetize these videos.”
The move marks an interesting contrast to music companies’ digital licensing arrangements with other vendors, such as mobile phone operators and Apple’s iTunes Music Store, where users pay for each video they want to view. Although videos from Gotuit’s site cannot be (easily) downloaded and transferred to digital music players, the company aims to encourage visitors to share videos and playlists with friends, and offers strong search capabilities to find videos. EMI has also held back on striking a license agreement with video site YouTube, unlike several other major distributors, citing ongoing copyright concerns.
No financial terms of EMI and Gotuit’s agreement were disclosed.
