Creating strategic alliances between companies and/or individuals enables common goals to be achieved for mutual benefit. You don't have to be a massive organization to benefit from cooperation, sometimes big fish need smaller fish to develop ideas and strategies - get out there find a partner!
During the Summer of 2009, Windows and ReverbNation created a strategic alliance that enabled independent musicians and artists to give away their music for free - but be paid by sponsorship of these songs. This was a radical 'win win' business proposal - the sponsor, Windows, were able to embed advertising into the graphic (cover artwork) of the downloadable mp3 and the artist was paid. The payment per download to the artist was low in comparison to iTunes, Amazon etc. but the value in exposure, reaching a larger market, was generous compensation. These participating artists have been given the opportunity to let their 'Sponsored Song' continue as a free download in a new archive as part of a new initiative called “Playlist 7”.
“Playlist 7” is again
a joint marketing venture between
Windows and
ReverbNation but this version of the same idea has a few twists. In principal it follows the same methodology, giving away a pool of free music to whoever is interested. Fans, friends and followers on Facebook, MySpace and Twitter of
Windows have
special access to a weekly pool of 50 new 'Featured Artists' to sample. Fans can download up to 7 of these songs free, and those downloads help decide which artists’ songs will be available for everyone to download the following week.
ReverbNation really did stand out as the most forward‑thinking of the emerging music‑fan platforms. Its toolkit for independent artists—fan management, mailing lists, widgets, analytics—was miles ahead of the competition, and the Windows partnership looked like a bold attempt to reshape how digital downloads might work. At the time, it genuinely felt like the kind of embryonic business model that could challenge iTunes and shift the industry toward free or frictionless music access.
Today, ReverbNation occupies a very different position. It’s no longer a contender in the “download wars”—that battle was ultimately won by streaming giants like Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube. Instead, ReverbNation has evolved into a niche but still valuable platform for independent musicians, focusing on artist services, EPK tools, distribution, and opportunities rather than trying to redefine how fans acquire music.
Seen from today’s vantage point, that early strategy wasn’t the solution to illegal downloading, nor did it dethrone the major players. But it was part of a crucial transitional moment: the shift from paid downloads to a world where access, discovery, and streaming dominate. ReverbNation helped pave the way for the idea that music could be free to listen to while still supporting artists through other channels.
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