eMUSIC ORCHESTRATES LAUNCH OF NAXOS’ ENTIRE 75,000-TRACK CATALOGUE

World’s No. 1 Independent Music Service Partners With the World’s Leading Classical Music Label


eMusic is the Only Digital Music Service to Offer All 75,000 of Naxos’ Tracks; Debuts Most Thorough Merchandising of Classical Music on the Web Ever

-- To Initiate this Symphonic Launch, eMusic Offers Gramophone Magazine Readers and Subscribers 50 Free MP3 Downloads --

New York, NY—October 20, 2005—eMusic, the world’s No. 1 independent music service, selling more than 2.4 million tracks monthly, today announced a landmark partnership with Naxos, the world’s leading classical music label. eMusic is the first digital music service to offer Naxos’ entire 75,000 track catalogue—the most extensive and respected collection of classical music ever assembled. Recently awarded the Label of the Year Award at The Classic FM/Gramophone Awards ceremony for its visionary approach to digital distribution and music education, Naxos brings unprecedented depth and flavor to eMusic’s already industry-leading Classical collection.

Naxos’ entire collection comprises works composed by more than 1,000 composers and performed by even more artists, choirs, ensembles and orchestras. From the concertos of Vivaldi and Bach, to the symphonies of Beethoven and Haydn, to the sonatas of Brahms and Dvorak, the Naxos catalogue is encyclopedic in scope and yet also ever-changing through a stream of new releases.

To launch this symphonic partnership, eMusic has initiated a special promotion for subscribers and readers of Gramophone magazine, one of the most acclaimed and respected magazines devoted exclusively to classical music: Each Gramophone subscriber and newsstand purchaser will be offered 50 free MP3 downloads from eMusic that they will own forever.

eMusic Offers Classical the Respect it Deserves
Debuting today the most advanced and most complete treatment of classical music online, eMusic treats this distinguished classical catalogue with the respect it deserves. With more reviews, liner notes, advanced browsing and search tools than at any other music service, eMusic’s Naxos classical launch will please the most discriminating classical music expert.

Other digital music services force-fit classical music into stores designed for pop music—often making such embarrassing mistakes as referring to the composer as “artist” and neglecting to include such crucial information as the conductor, soloist, and orchestra actually performing the work. True classical music buffs often opt not to buy classical music from digital music services lacking the sophistication and appreciation necessary to truly merchandise classical music. eMusic instead built the best classical digital music store on the web, taking pains to display the most complete information available about every work, right down to the track level, allowing classical music aficionados to know exactly what they are downloading. eMusic’s new Classical Album Page sets a new standard in comprehensive classical music merchandising.

As an example, compare the same Naxos album available, “BEETHOVEN: Chamber Music for Horns, Winds and Strings,” at iTunes and eMusic:

http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewAlbum?id=19482381&s=143441

http://www.emusic.com/album/10871/10871303.html

Notice in the iTunes version a potential buyer cannot even determine which orchestra performed the work, which conductor conducted it, which soloists performed on each work, and which composers composed each work.

Another example demonstrates the richness of the metadata eMusic presents to accompany each title. Please note how eMusic handles a release with more than one composer on the album.

http://www.emusic.com/album/10870/10870662.html

Perhaps most meaningfully, many novice classical buyers are looking for guidance in selecting the right version of some particular work. This is where eMusic really shines, including reviews and context for more than 80% of the Naxos catalogue, penned by some of the most knowledgeable classical music experts in the world, including Pulitzer-prize winning classical music critic Justin Davidson; Billboard magazine classical columnist Anastasia Tsioulcas; Classics Today executive editor and author David Hurwitz; author Robert Levine; composer-pianist Jed Distler; and classical critic Dan Davis.

In addition, eMusic is introducing this exciting addition with a new section of the eMusic service devoted to Naxos and their outstanding catalogue. A great place to start to get familiar with the Naxos catalogue and receive guidance from the eMusic experts is: http://www.emusic.com/naxos.

“Today Naxos and eMusic launch the definitive online classical music digital destination, curating one of the world’s most important classical collections and treating it with the respect it deserves and which true classical music fans expect,” said David Pakman, President and CEO of eMusic and a Managing Director of Dimensional Associates, the private equity arm of JDS Capital that owns eMusic, The Orchard and Dimensional Music Publishing. No longer will classical music be relegated to the outermost fringes of digital music retailing. It has a warm and friendly home at eMusic. We are also pleased to welcome Gramophone readers to the eMusic service.”

"As Naxos continues to position itself at the forefront of the digital landscape, we are proud to partner with eMusic, the premiere independent digital music service,” said Jim Selby, COO, Naxos of America, Inc. “eMusic is a key player in the evolution of independent music distribution and promotion, and Naxos is excited to bring the quality and depth of its award-winning catalogue to the innovative eMusic platform."

"The Gramophone voted Naxos its Label of the Year in the 2005 Classic FM Gramophone Awards for its imaginative A&R, its commitment to an unequalled breadth of music and for its vision into the digital future—a vision further exemplified by Naxos's new partnership with eMusic,” said James Jolly, Editor-In-Chief of Gramophone. “Barely a month goes by without Naxos securing at least one Editor's Choice and the range of music on offer is breathtaking. Naxos may be one of the younger record labels around, but it has already secured a place in the hearts of music lovers the world over."

About eMusic
eMusic (www.emusic.com) stands alone as the only digital music service that is 100% focused on serving the needs of independent music fans and independent labels. Delivering more than 2.4 million downloads each month, eMusic is among the top digital music services, offering a diverse catalog of 700,000 tracks from established and emerging artists in every genre from the world's top independent labels. eMusic was not only the first service to sell songs and albums in the popular MP3 format, it was the first company to launch a digital music subscription service. Unlike other services that severely restrict portability, eMusic allows members complete flexibility to burn CDs, transfer to MP3 devices and make multiple copies for personal use. eMusic also offers access to exclusive recordings from eMusicLive's network of premier music venues across the country. eMusic subscription plans start at $9.99 per month for 40 downloads. A free trial is available to all new users. Based in New York and San Diego, eMusic is wholly owned by Dimensional Associates, Inc., the private equity arm of JDS Capital Management, Inc.

NOTE: eMusic is a registered trademark and eMusic.com is a trademark of eMusic.com Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

About Naxos
Since 1987, Naxos has redefined how classical music is presented and marketed. Innovative strategies of recording exciting new repertoire with exceptional talent have enabled the label to develop one of the largest and fastest growing catalogues of unduplicated repertoire available anywhere—currently over 2500 titles—with state-of-the-art sound and consumer-friendly prices.

About Gramophone
From its peerless—and fearless—reviews to its penetrating interviews with the world's leading classical music artists, Gramophone magazine is simply unmatched. Our writers are acknowledged as experts in their respective fields, and Gramophone is acclaimed globally for the independence and intelligence of its editorial.

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