Getty Images gets pumped up on music

Tom Taulli — Wed, 20 Jun 2007 15:12:00 EST

Filed under: Deals, Google (GOOG), General Electric (GE), NIKE, Inc'B' (NKE)

Late last year, I did an interview with Steve Ellis, who is founder and CEO of Pump Audio. I thought his company filled an import need in the market - and was poised for growth in the YouTube video surge.

Well, Getty Images (NYSE: GYI) is also bullish. That is, the company shelled out $42 million to buy Pump Audio.

Basically, Pump Audio has spent the past six years developing a sophisticated system to license music to digital providers. The catalog has over 100,000 titles and has biggie customers like GE's (NYSE: GE) NBC and Nike (NYSE: NKE).

So, video creators have a way to enhance content (the search engine makes it easy to locate the right music). And, at the same time, music creators can also monetize their creations.

It's a pretty smart idea. It's also a good fit with Getty Images, which focuses on licensing businesses.

To get more insight on all this, you can check out Ellis' interview on BloggingStocks.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including the Complete M&A Handbook and the EDGAR-Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements.

Getty Images gets pumped up on music originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 20 Jun 2007 15:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Blogging Stocks interview: Pump Audio founder on copyrights and more

Tom Taulli — Wed, 01 Nov 2006 10:10:00 EST

Filed under: Google (GOOG), Next Big Thing

Recently, MySpace announced that it is taking measures to block unauthorized music. What does this all mean?

I had a chance to interview Steve Ellis, who is founder and CEO of Pump Audio. A former musician, he is now working along with major Internet and media brands to deal with copyright issues.

Q: What's your take on MySpace's recent moves on copyrights?

A: MySpace is recognizing that copyright rules apply in the online world, even when it comes to an individual consumer's social networking profile or latest online video creation. Now people can argue that record labels are being short-sighted not to allow consumers to essentially promote popular songs virally through places like MySpace, but the reality is that copyright law is pretty clear about use of unauthorized music. I think MySpace is making a smart move to address these issues now, rather than waiting for major legal action. Of course, MySpace no doubt is making a business decision as well given its reported plans to sell music but it would have had to face the issue sooner or later.

You'll see that MySpace won't be alone in cracking down on unauthorized use of copyrighted music because the major record labels and publishers are unlikely to sit back and have popular music shared widely. More and more Web sites, whether social networks or user-generated video service, will be addressing the issue whether through enforcement, deals with record labels or the use of music sources like Pump Audio where copyright issues are already solved.

Continue reading Blogging Stocks interview: Pump Audio founder on copyrights and more

Blogging Stocks interview: Pump Audio founder on copyrights and more originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 01 Nov 2006 10:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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