EMI Music Enters into Agreement with SNOCAP to Drive Expansion of Legitimate Digital Music Market

Business Wire, May 5, 2005

SAN FRANCISCO & NEW YORK -- SNOCAP, the first end-to-end provider of digital licensing and copyright management services for the digital music marketplace and EMI Music, the world's largest independent music company, today announced that they have signed an agreement for SNOCAP to provide identification and copyright management technologies, as well as database services, that will drive new revenue streams for the legitimate peer-to-peer online distribution of EMI's prestigious catalog of recorded music.

"This deal with SNOCAP underscores EMI's commitment to developing legitimate ways to deliver our music in more ways to more fans, including peer-to-peer distribution models that ensure creators are compensated for their works," said David Munns, Chairman and CEO EMI Music North America. "This sends a signal to music industry critics who claim we are technophobic. If anything, we are embracing technologies like SNOCAP, which allow the P2P community to share music legally. It's a big step forward for fans, artists and copyright owners."

"We're pleased to join with EMI to bring an unprecedented selection of digital music to people around the world through peer-to-peer platforms and other online retailers," said Shawn Fanning, Chief Strategy Officer of SNOCAP. "EMI understands the role that innovation can play in taking the digital music market to the next level and we look forward to working with them to bring consumers the full breadth of content we know that they're looking for and an expanded choice in distribution models."

EMI will immediately begin delivering and registering its content with SNOCAP so that their content can be made available via online retailers and P2P network operators. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

SNOCAP is the first end-to-end solution for online music distribution and copyright management, serving as a virtual one-stop-shop for clearing digital rights for retailers and P2P network providers. SNOCAP's copyright management interface enables label partners to set business rules for each track, on a global basis. At the backend, SNOCAP handles complex issues such as copyright clearance and regional distribution rights so that record labels and artists can legitimately tap into new distribution opportunities while enabling online services to focus on delivering great musical content to their customers.

About SNOCAP

Founded in September 2002, SNOCAP, Inc., based in San Francisco, offers record labels, publishers, and artists an end-to-end solution for digital licensing and copyright management services. Through SNOCAP, operators of authorized peer-to-peer services and online retailers will have access to the largest possible catalog of authorized content that has historically been available only on unauthorized services. SNOCAP's easy-to-use service for registering digital content and managing online distribution will enable a more vibrant digital marketplace with better selection and a variety of compelling business models. SNOCAP's database will include current hits, new releases, live recordings, remixes, B-sides and out-of-print tracks culled from major labels, independent and unsigned artists. For more information, visit www.snocap.com.

About EMI Music

EMI Music is the world's largest independent record company, operating in nearly 50 countries around the world. Its record labels include Angel, Astralwerks, Blue Note, Capitol, EMI, EMI Classics, Manhattan, Mute, Parlophone and Virgin.