MQA Spreads Its Wings, Partners with Rhapsody’s Powered by Napster
MQA’s reach will spread just a bit further as of Monday morning, as the high resolution streaming technology announced it will soon also be available on Rhapsody’s Powered by Napster B-to-B global service.
While not currently an option on Napster’s consumer direct products, the business-oriented feed currently powers the front end to other music services offered from the likes of car manufacturers, store chains and iHeartRadio.
It’s a move that continues fuel the idea that high resolution music might be something that the masses eventually demand, even if it’s not running hot on the forefront of every consumer’s mind quite yet. There has been a “studio quality” trend this quarter, hopefully a more concrete sign of things to come across the board.
More details and links in the presser below.
“RHAPSODY INTERNATIONAL INC. ADDS MQA STUDIO QUALITY AUDIOTO ‘POWERED BY NAPSTER’ PLATFORM SERVICE
Global agreement supports Powered by Napster with an extensive breadth of studio quality audio solutions.
Seattle, WA, May 6, 2019 — Rhapsody International Inc., a pioneer in digital music and leading provider of music streaming technologies and services for partners, today announced it has completed a global agreement with MQA, the innovative company delivering authenticated master quality music in a file small enough to stream. Rhapsody’s Powered by Napster platform service now offers partners the option to choose high-resolution and studio-quality audio for those who select MQA (Master Quality Authenticated) as their format of choice.
Powered by Napster will offer MQA music tracks across multiple platforms including mobile, automotive and home.
“Powered by Napster brings new and innovative branded streaming music services to partners intent on transforming their customer experience. High-resolution audio is a powerful tool to have in our box,” said Angel Gambino, Chief Commercial Officer of Napster. “Our work with MQA signals the growth of high-resolution audio streaming and quality becoming a bigger part of the conversation.”
Powered by Napster is a complete music and audio platform service. It offers companies a suite of technologies and solutions, including music and media streaming and download infrastructure, applications, rights management, customer billing, royalty administration, and business intelligence. The addition of MQA positions Powered by Napster as the leader in high-quality audio music services.
The Napster/MQA partnership means that the original, highest resolution versions of your favorite music can be delivered and authenticated at the time the consumer streams it. MQA technology is quickly becoming the format for distributing verified, studio-quality music across a variety of platforms.
“Artists and creators are very clear that they want to give their fans the best possible sound quality,” said Mike Jbara, CEO of MQA. “With this agreement, Napster has positioned themselves as strong advocates for creators and its global reach makes today’s announcement a great milestone for MQA’s many global hardware partners.”
To learn how companies can get “Powered by Napster” visit https://business.napster.com/.
About Rhapsody International, Inc.
Rhapsody International is a pioneer in digital music and leading provider of music streaming technologies and services for businesses. Rhapsody operates the Napster platform in 34 countries with a premium subscription service giving millions of Consumers unlimited ad-free access to music on any device – online or offline. Napster combines the iconic history of one of the most recognizable music brands in the world with the vast experience and technological platform of Rhapsody International Inc., the industry’s first subscription streaming service provider. Rhapsody is headquartered in Seattle, with offices in the U.S., Europe, Asia, and Latin America. Follow @Napster on Twitter and Facebook, and learn more at www.napster.com.
About MQA
Using pioneering scientific research into how people hear, the MQA team has created a technology that captures the sound of the original studio performance. The master MQA file is fully authenticated and is small enough to stream or download, while also being backward compatible, so you can play MQA music on any device. MQA’s award-winning technology is licensed by labels, music services and hardware manufacturers worldwide and is certified by the RIAA. MQA is a UK-based private company.
For more information visit www.mqa.co.uk“