The Napster Community is, as you know, the largest and fastest growing community on the Internet, and we thank you for making that possible.

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We at Napster have just announced a strategic alliance with Bertelsmann, a globally respected media company and owner of BMG music. Together, we'll be working to make Napster even better. Over time, and as we gain further industry support, we'll work to transform Napster into a membership-based service that preserves the Napster experience. There will always be a free, promotional file-sharing element to Napster.

As we move forward, we're going to ask you for your ideas before we make any changes as a result of this agreement. No changes will occur without plenty of advance notice. We know that Napster only works because of you.

Why are we doing this? For months, we have been working to find a system that rewards artists for their work when members of our community share their music over the Internet. We've been trying to find a fair and mutually agreeable solution to concerns raised by others - without having to leave Napster's future hanging on the outcome of a court case.

What we needed was a far-sighted member of the media industry to work with us.

Now we have just such an ally. Bertelsmann was the first publisher to directly market books to people rather than only through bookstores; Bertelsmann's eCommerce Group has led the way in recognizing the opportunities offered by the Internet to give higher quality services. They understand the importance of person-to-person file sharing, and know that the way forward is to make Napster better, offering a better, higher-quality set of services.

As Shawn Fanning said at the announcement: If you think Napster is great now, just wait. We're just getting started.

To download the latest version of Napster, please visit our Napster page.

 

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