Whereas Itunes and Napster don't want you to file-share the songs that you buy off them, Weedshare wants you to share as many songs as you purchase with as many people as possible.

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This story was originally run in Music Software Monthly

On the face of it, it seems like a crazy idea. How can file-sharers co-exist with a financially-responsible online music venture?

When you download a Weedfile, which utilizes Windows Media digital rights management, you get three free listens. If you like the song, you can unlock it by purchasing it. This will allow you to burn it to disc or copy it to a WMA-friendly player. But, along with the right to listen to the song as much as you like, you can also distribute it to as many people as you like. Each person who recieves the song gets their three free listens before they get to choose whether to buy the song or not.

Fifty percent of the purchase price goes to the artist, with 15% going to Weedshare. The remaining 35 percent provides for a commision-based system that allows Weed-sharers to make some money by distibuting and promiting the artists they believe in. We fired a few quick questions at Weedshare's John Beezer to find out a bit more.

Q. How did you come up with the idea for WeedShare?

A friend of mine came up with it, Tom Lindeman. He gave the subject a lot of thought and eventually figured out the basic concept. He knew I was a huge DRM skeptic so he called me to see what I would think. His reasoning was that file-sharing was actually a good thing and therefore people should be paid for it. Weed developed from that premise. I was shocked that the whole thing actually made sense, so within a few minutes I was saying "We gotta do this." He didn't want to quit his job, so I went for it. Tom's on the board now, but he still hasn't quit his job.

Q. How did you arrive at the figure of three listens before a file has to be bought?

We broke into factions within the company on this early on. There were the two-ists and the three-ites. Eventually a few things tipped the balance. One was the idea that a phone call or something could interrupt a play and ruin it, so we should give an extra one just in case something happens. Another factor was the idea that we didn't want to be stingy. People shouldn't feel pressured to buy before they're ready. Finally it seems that three listens is about what it takes to know for sure if you like a piece of music.

Q. Why should an artist sign up with WeedShare as opposed to any other services that help artists sell music? (ie. what makes you guys better than other services?)

The really important distinction has to do with secondary distribution. Weed converts it from a threat into an opportunity for musicians. And this removes all kinds of barriers. For example, if you want to publish music on the Internet, Weed provides a base for DIY distribution, promotion, and e-commerce. Or, if you just want to sell other people's music on the Internet, you can collect the files you like, post them on your web site, and you're in business. I don't mean to pretend that any of these things are easy to do. Promotion is an art form in its own right. But Weed cuts out most of the upfront costs, and that opens up the possibility to just about anyone.

Q. How many downloads have been sold? 3-4,000 so far. We're still kind of testing everything out. We'll do a big media blitz in the near future.

Q. How many artists have you got 'sharing the weed'? What are your most successful artists by a> download b> sales?

I'm not sure how many artists, but we've got about 1000 titles right now. The biggest hit so far is by a guy named Greg Bartlett, who's living in Mexico. I would describe him as the long lost son of Neil Young and Lucinda Williams. The number two, all-time, Weed-hit is a song called 'Amuse Me' by One Carper Green, who were an incredibly precocious high school band when they recorded it. I think they all started college this fall.

You can download these files right now and listen to them free:
Greg Bartlett (aka Rye the Band)

One Carper Green

Q. What is the most useful way artists can distribute their weed? (P2P, websites, email etc).

Just about anything works, even CDs. We're a little wary of e-mail, though. We don't encourage people to e-mail five meg files all over the place. Weed web sites are fun and pretty easy for most people to set up. P2P networks are great because you don't have to do anything. The songs distribute themselves. Weed uses a specific file-naming convention to make it easy for people on P2P networks to find a certain song, or artist, or even just to look around for Weed files in general.

Q. Where do you see WeedShare being in a year's time?

We really don't know. It's going to grow organically, so it could take on a life of its own. I think we'd prefer to see it propagate steadily at a manageable pace. Not too manageable, though.

For more information, visit www.Weedshare.com.  

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