“WaTunes to Become the New MySpace?" is the headline of the press release, but we'll all have to wait until after Sept 28th to learn more more. That's when the free online music distributor launches WaTunes New Experience.
The company does say that the upgrade includes Skype integration which enables artists and fans to communicate directly and engage in social activities like listening to music, buying ringtones, and watching videos. “By integrating their technology into our social platform, we've opened a new approach for fans to make instant calls to their favorite artist, artists can make instant calls to their fans or labels." says Tony Pytleski, VP of WaTunes.
I'm not sure labels want their phones ringing with fan questions, but I've often thought that the new free and cheap phone and video conferencing technologies offer unexplored opportunities for artists and music marketers, though I doubt its enough to vault a startup into MySpace's league. But with or without WaTunes, it's worthwhile taking a creative look at the online audio and video products available. For example, wh y not use voicemail to leave fans a message and gather comments or schedule a video conference Q & A?
