There’s an old saying; “If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.” While that advice nearly always holds true, we’re sincerely hoping that Qtrax is one of the exceptions to the rule. After several false starts and over a year of “it’s coming,” Qtrax has announced in what appears to be a press release issued ahead of schedule, that their free and unlimited P2P music service will finally be released to the masses on Monday. Qtrax supposedly has the support of all four major labels and will provide a P2P network that will be entirely free to users. Initially available for XP and Vista only (OS X version coming on March 18), the Qtrax beta application will serve as a portal into the world’s first entirely legal free P2P network. All transfers will be tracked and royalties will be issued to labels and publishers accordingly. All revenue will be generated by advertising delivered from within the Qtrax application, and it’s unclear exactly what form(s) the advertising will take. Regardless, the initial catalog of downloadable tracks is estimated between 25 and 30 million songs from major labels and indies, giving the service the largest legal library on the ‘net. CEO Allan Klepfisz states, “We will provide a vastly better service than unauthorized sites with superior technology, alluring and vast content, and free music that won’t get you arrested. QTRAX makes other services look as outdated as the cassette tape.” Could this mean the end of illegal online music sharing? Yeah, we doubt it too. Hello, Newzbin!
Free, Legal and Unlimited P2P? This we Have to See
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