Web3-based digital music-sharing platforms are making a comeback. LimeWire revealed recently that it had secured big label Universal Music Group to its platform, only days after rumors leaked that Napster will resurface in the guise of an NFT marketplace on Algorand. Previously, in March, it also announced its Algorand-based marketplace.
LimeWire was a peer-to-peer (P2P) file-sharing service popular in the early 2000s and is now owned by an NFT marketplace. It has also struck a contract with Universal Music Group (UMG) to develop NFT initiatives with artists.
Algorand is a proof-of-stake blockchain network touted as a competitor to Ethereum, the most popular platform for NFTs and decentralized applications. Algorand and Hivemind, a Web3 investment business, revealed last week that they had bought Napster, streaming (and formerly peer-to-peer) music service, with intentions to develop a Web3 music platform.
The planned LimeWire marketplace will allow artists registered to Universal Music Group and its many imprint companies to create tokenized digital collectibles. Interscope Records, Def Jam Records, Motown Records, Geffen, Republic Records, EMI, Virgin Music, and others are Universal’s imprints.
UMG stated that the agreement would allow its artists to sell NFTs, including audio recordings, additional tracks, backstage footage, photographs, and other exclusive materials to fans and collectors.
Universal isn’t making its first foray into the Web3 realm. Kingship, a Gorillaz-inspired virtual band based on a series of Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs, was announced by UMG’s 10:22 PM label in November. The band will perform in virtual worlds while also selling its own NFTs.
In terms of LimeWire, The company announced in April that it had received $10.4 million in a token sale headed by Kraken Ventures, Arrington Capital, and GSR, with participation from Crypto.com Capital and singer Deadmau5’s 720Mau5 fund.
