“Whether you prefer hard rockers or accordion-pumping folk singers, Yahoo Inc. will stick with an aggressively low $5 monthly fee in the first major marketing push for its online music service,” Michele Gershberg reports for Reuters. “After an introductory roll-out in May, Yahoo was set to announce on Thursday that it would keep its music download subscription priced well below those of competitors, such as RealNetworks Inc.’s Rhapsody and Napster Inc., in an effort to become ‘the standard online music service.'”
“Yahoo Inc. Chief Marketing Officer Cammie Dunaway said the music service had so far attracted subscribers through public relations efforts and word of mouth. The new Yahoo Music campaign will be the online media company’s most aggressive push this year, she said… Pixelated characters representing rock band Green Day and rapper Missy Elliott bounce and bop in the Yahoo Music online ads, with viewers able to move the “Mini-Pop” stars onscreen. The ads were created by agencies Soho Square and OgilvyOne, San Francisco,” Gershberg reports.
“The campaign debuts on August 28 during the MTV Video Music Awards with the tagline ‘Over A Million Songs – 5 Bucks A Month – This Is Huge.’ One television commercial shows an animated spaceship beaming up favourite musicians, then pulverizing a lederhosen-clad accordion player,” Gershberg reports. “Commercials will air on MTV and Comedy Central. Yahoo has also planned ads in a new video game from Midway Games Inc., and other nontraditional campaign efforts.”
Full article here.
Related MacDailyNews articles:
BusinessWeek: Apple unlikely to launch music subscription service – August 15, 2005
Apple CEO Steve Jobs on Yahoo music, iPod, cellphones, ‘Halo Effect,’ viruses and more – May 23, 2005
Analyst: Yahoo’s music entry threatens Napster and RealNetworks more than Apple – May 12, 2005
Yahoo’s music play hurts Napster, RealNetworks; may force Apple to offer iTunes subscription service – May 12, 2005
Napster To Go Soon? Reports $24.3 million net loss on $17.4 million net revenue – May 12, 2005
J.P. Morgan: Yahoo music service ‘does little to break Apple’s tight grip’ on digital music market – May 11, 2005
Yahoo launches Napster To Go, Rhapsody To Go killer (takes aim at Apple’s iTunes Music Store?) – May 11, 2005
RealNetworks drops 21%, Napster plummets 30% on Yahoo music news – May 11, 2005
Study shows Apple iTunes Music Store pay-per-download model preferred over subscription service – April 11, 2005
