U.K.-based Shazam is planning to roll out its song-recognition service into new markets and is formulating a new strategy for the business-to-business Shazam CEO Jerry Roest last week announced deals to launch the service in Switzerland. Austria, Poland. Italy. Australia. Greece and New Zealand. As previously reported. The service is scheduled to go live in China by year's end (Bulletin, June 18). The deals will bring Shazam to 10 countries in total reaching a potential 450 million mobile-phone users. Agreements for Japan and South Korea are said to be imminent. Shazam has deals with mobile-phone operators in each market. All will offer rebranded versions of the Shazam service, which allows customers to learn the name of a song and its artist by 'grabbing' an audio sample using a
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mobile-phone handset. Shazam's next goal is to enter North America. Africa and the Middle East. "We didn't know a year ago that we would be market leaders; no one knew there was mileage in this investment," Roest admits. The company is also exploring using the technology for a B2B service. Roest says the system has four potential B2B applications: to track music played on air and online in order to tabulate performance royalties, to improve TV and radio airplay reporting techniques, to track music used in advertising and to monitor unauthorized use by pirates. "We have our teeth into the first two," Roest says. Shazam says it is working with partners on broadcast monitoring trials in the U.S.: however, the company would not provide details •
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