NEW YORK and LONDON, March 17, 2005 (PRIMEZONE) -- NMK, Inc., a leading mobile entertainment company today announced, through its MusiKube(tm) brand, a partnership with Shazam Entertainment, the pioneer in mobile music recognition and mobile music services. NMK will use Shazam's audio recognition technology to power its comprehensive music recognition and discovery service for mobile users. NMK will launch a multi-carrier service in the United States later this month.
"Partnering with Shazam provides NMK with an unrivaled music identification solution that enables us to rapidly bring this exciting capability to the U.S. market," said Sunjay Guleria, CEO of NMK. "Music recognition is the logical first step into turning everyday mobile phones into personal music search and discovery tools. Our solution allows consumers to capture, buy and create their own personalized music 'wishlists' that are accessible anywhere, anytime."
At the heart of the NMK system is the Encyclomedia(tm), a proprietary mobile media personalization and merchandising platform, which allows for the rapid deployment of new, mass-market solutions to simplify mobile search for music and music-related commerce. By accessing Shazam's rich database of over 2.5 million tracks, NMK is providing consumers with an entry point to a vast array of song information, at their fingertips.
"Mobile music recognition has opened up an entirely new channel for music sales, which captures those users who hear a tune, but don't know the artist, and want to own it on impulse," said Claus Nehmzow, International Director, Shazam Entertainment. "We are delighted to partner with NMK. We have no doubt that this partnership will result in the delivery of a highly successful service and help Shazam achieve its objectives of growth in the U.S. market."
About NMK
NMK is an entertainment solutions company, specializing in wireless music applications. Through its MusiKube(tm) brand, NMK is the only company of its kind working with record labels and mobile operators to champion an authorized system that supports consumer's ability to maximize impulse purchases of music and other related products.
NMK's Encyclomedia(tm) contains rich, licensed information on all U.S. commercially released sound recordings, and links to a wealth of related content and commerce options - including the largest U.S. commercial ringtone catalog, commercial CD's and digital downloads. Designed to seamlessly integrate with third party content, commerce and service providers, the Encylomedia platform provides these partners with a variety of enhanced service offerings as well as own-branded solutions.
NMK is based in New York City. For more information, visit www.musikube.com.
About Shazam Entertainment
Shazam Entertainment boasts a world's first in music recognition technology. The company's core strength is audio recognition, based on a technology invented and developed exclusively for Shazam. The company has filed a number of patents to protect its intellectual property.
Shazam has already begun establishing a global footprint and has achieved multiple deals with international mobile operators and media companies throughout the US, Europe and Asia. These deals will mean that Shazam's technology will be available to well over 1 billion mobile users worldwide.
Shazam's successes have been recognized through several awards, including: Best New Mobile Service at the Mobile Choice Awards, Best Innovation at the BT Openworld Interactive Music Awards, Web Innovation of the Year at the Future UK Internet Awards, Best start-up at the Revolution Awards, an Ericsson Mobile Application Award, and the Media Week Response Campaign of the year.
For more information visit www.shazam.com