All four major label groups are working together to create a new format for the digital album tentatively titled CMX. Scheduled for a partial roll-out in November, the new digital format would include liner notes, lyrics, artwork and videos along with the mp3's in a single download.
The labels apparently approached Apple about involvement in the project and were rebuffed. Now Apple is also working on its own new album format dubbed Cocktail that will apparently be tethered to a new proprietary media device.
“Apple at first told us that they were not interested, but now they have decided to do their own, in case ours catches on," a source close to the CMX project told the Times UK. “Ours will be a file that you click on, it opens and it would have a totally brand-new look, with a launch page and all the different options. When you click on it you're not just going to get the ten tracks, you're going to get the artwork, the video and mobile products."
