7 Digital Grabs Access To Bebos 31 Million Users

7digital and Bebo have announced a partnership which will
allow Bebo’s 31 million users worldwide to download music directly from the
social networking site.  Bebo currently has over 450,000 registered bands worldwide. 

Artists signed-up through Bebo Bands will be able to either sign up for
a free Starter indiestore account, which will allow them to sell four
tracks, or a Pro account, which enables them to sell 20 tracks. A
specially created indiestore widget will further streamline the process.

Read the press release after the jump.

London, 28th March 07 – 7digital and Bebo today announced an exclusive partnership which will allow Bebo’s 31m users worldwide to download music directly from the social networking site.

Bebo currently has over 450,000 registered bands worldwide and the partnership means artists can now make money from their music, using 7digital’s indiestore service. 

The integration of indiestore’s features into Bebo Bands will allow Bebo to offer a new and exciting service to its user base in the UK, Ireland, US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, and will also open up a massive global audience for existing indiestore acts.  indiestore acts will be promoted on Bebo Bands and to Bebo’s global user base, including over 8m users in the UK.

Artists signed-up through Bebo Bands will be able to either sign up for a free Starter indiestore account, which will allow them to sell four tracks, or a Pro account, which enables them to sell 20 tracks. A specially created indiestore widget and the tight integration of the two services means that after signing up and uploading their music, an artist just needs to click a button to seamlessly add the widget to their Bebo profile.

The widget lists all the tracks that the artist has on their indiestore and lets visitors listen to the tracks on the bands profile page; a powerful addition to the existing Bebo experience. If they are interested in purchasing a track, they can simply click ‘download’ and be taken to the bands store at 7digital.

7digital’s indiestore offers artists the chance to easily sell their music, with sales from the Pro account counting towards official charts in the UK, US and over 20 other countries.  Artists can sell in multiple currencies, with PayPal, Click & Buy and even SMS.  With SMS purchasing, indiestore allows artists to reach their fans at anytime and sell to those that don’t have credit cards.

The 7digital widget also allows 4,000 labels internationally (including all the majors) to sell their music on Bebo. The widget can be shared amongst the Bebo community – allowing truly viral distribution. Bands already taking advantage of the new service include The Killers (http://thekillersuk.bebo.com) and Muse (http://muse.bebo.com)

Ben Drury, MD, 7digital explains: “Our mission is to provide artists and labels with all the tools they need to start making money from their music.  Artists can be successful and break into the charts now with minimum outlay; they just need a reasonable audience.  The partnership with Bebo brings the functionality of the 7digital platform to millions and gives artists mass exposure – it’s great news for all.”

Joanna Shields, President International, Bebo commented: “We’re adding more than 3000 new bands and artists each day and affording individuals a voice to express themselves and share their music and passions with likeminded people. Music remains a defining part of the Bebo network experience and our partnership with 7digital will present additional value to our users allowing them to not only discover, but purchase music on Bebo.”