MediaNet Digital

MediaNet Introduces a Sophisticated Recommendation Engine to Enhance Music Sites and Applications

Posted by MediaNet Public Relations | August 26, 2010 1:21 pm | No Comments

Tags: API Updates, Press Releases, Product Updates

MediaNet’s Recommendation Engine, live today, delivers highly-relevant, real-time music recommendations for any website or application.

MediaNet, the leading provider of digital entertainment content, today announced the availability of a full-featured music recommendation engine through the MN Open API. The Recommendation Engine allows MediaNet affiliates to easily offer highly-relevant music recommendations to users of their web site or application. Affiliates can learn more about this product and sign up today at www.mndigital.com.

Alan McGlade, CEO of MediaNet, stated: “MediaNet has been powering transactions on music services for almost a decade. We have been able to use the knowledge gained from that rich transaction history to create a recommendation tool that delivers the most relevant results for consumers looking to select and purchase music.”

The MediaNet patent-pending algorithms will enable affiliates to provide track, artist, album and user-based recommendations. For example, if a user requests a track that is similar to “Jacosta” by Noah & the Whale, using algorithms to analyze aggregated transactions, plays and user behaviors, the MediaNet Recommendation Engine will recommend “The Comeback” by Shout Out Louds, and “I Know I Know I Know” by Tegan and Sara. MediaNet recommendations will always be current due to its real-time technologies and artist popularity methods.

The key features and benefits of the MediaNet Recommendation Engine are as follows:

Use of actual transactional data

Most recommendation services rely on either software that compares specific musical attributes, or on human music editors who decide what artists to recommend based on certain user selections. MediaNet taps a treasure trove of actual usage data to make its recommendations.

Greater coverage of available music

The MediaNet Recommendation Engine is more likely to give a relevant return on any given track since it is looking at a long history of user activity with a broad catalog. An editorial-based recommendation is going to be limited to high-profile artists and albums.

Track-level Results

The MediaNet Recommendation Engine will make suggestions down to the track level, a feature that is particularly relevant for radio and on-demand streaming services. Many recommendation services only offer similar artist.

Easy integration with other MediaNet services

Recommendations can be added using the standard MN Open APIs that also provide access to metadata, samples, streams, and downloads.

Customers can now sign up for the MediaNet Recommendation Engine at www.mndigital.com, and have a music recommendation feature added to their music service or application in no time. MediaNet operates a high-volume media distribution network delivering premium content in the US, Canada, and the UK for application and web developers of all sizes from niche bloggers to global brands.

McGlade added: “MediaNet has vastly improved music recommendations and simplified the integration process. With our auto sign up we allow customers to find an easy, self serve solution.”

About MediaNet
MediaNet is the leading provider of premium digital media content. MN Open, MediaNet’s advanced technology platform, offers an API and easy to use Web Components that deliver a set of powerful music and eBook content products. MediaNet currently powers hundreds of customers of all sizes from niche bloggers to global brands allowing them to integrate digital entertainment content into their website or application quickly and easily to engage users and generate revenues.

MediaNet (www.mndigital.com) a digital music pioneer founded in 2001, is privately-held and headquartered in New York with offices in Seattle and London

MediaNet Launches eBook Catalog and Distribution Service

Posted by MediaNet Public Relations | April 28, 2010 9:10 am | No Comments

Tags: API Updates, Biz Updates, Content Updates, Press Releases, Product Updates

Success in Digital Music Distribution is Expanded to Deliver Comprehensive
eBooks Digital Bookstore and Full-Featured Product Offering

NEW YORK, NY (April 28, 2010) – MediaNet, the leading service provider for the distribution of premium digital media, introduced today a comprehensive eBook catalog and product offering.  The advanced MN Open platform that MediaNet has successfully built for digital music will now support the integration of eBooks using an intuitive API that has been widely adopted by more than 100 application developers, web publishers and online retailers for music offerings.

MediaNet will make available a broad catalog of eBooks including the most popular titles that are available through major physical and online book sellers. These eBooks will initially be offered in the Adobe ePub and PDF formats which are compatible with a wide variety of devices including PC, Mac, Sony Reader, Nook and new entrants such as the Plastic Logic Que, and additional formats will be introduced as needed. Currently there are applications available in the marketplace that will allow for compatibility with the “iDevices” including the iPhone and iPad, similar to the applications available for digital music. 

Alan McGlade, CEO of MediaNet stated:  “MediaNet has a long track record in the music business with proven success in the digital delivery of premium music content.  MediaNet currently powers music metadata, streams and downloads for over one hundred digital retailers and online entertainment destinations. The integration of eBooks comes at the right time for this burgeoning industry and is a natural extension of MediaNet’s digital music roots.”

MediaNet’s eBook service will be accessed by web publishers and application developers through an API built on top of MediaNet’s enterprise class content delivery platform.  MediaNet’s API provides complete control over the user experience, functionality, e-commerce and content catalog. Online retailers can rapidly implement more advanced browsing, discovery, and purchase options under their own brand. MediaNet will make available its popular suite of Web Components for the eBooks offering in the next month.  With no coding required and a quick time to market, MediaNet’s Web Components allow anyone to place dynamically displayed eBook content anywhere on the Web.  This offers a contextually rich experience with eBooks content presented to end users in a relevant manner when they are most interested in an author or subject and likely to transact. 

New MediaNet customers can sign-up for the MN Open eBook service by going to www.mndigital.com. They will be able to incorporate a versatile and intelligent download manager to simplify the acquisition and management of eBooks for their end users. Once an eBook service is successfully launched, MediaNet customers will be given access to a sophisticated real-time reporting portal to monitor sales activity. 

Alan McGlade added:  “The MN Open eBook solution gives web publishers and application developers access to a new form of premium digital content that will increase user engagement and generate sales.  Book publishers will see a significant broadening of eBook distribution online with a powerful new marketing platform for titles to be exposed to consumers when they are most likely to purchase them. In addition, MediaNet’s entry in the growing eBooks marketplace will spur innovation by lowering the barrier to entry for a broad range of online retailers and encouraging new ways to present eBooks and touch consumers.”

Contact:
Ann Garrett
MediaNet
818-501-8499 or agarrett@mndigital.com

eBooks PR Images

MediaNet eBooks API Screenshot

MediaNet eBooks Web Component Screenshot


MediaNet Logo

MediaNet Announces Advanced Media Distribution Network

Posted by MediaNet Public Relations | September 16, 2009 5:49 pm | No Comments

Tags: Press Releases, Product Updates

New York, NY, September 17, 2009 – MediaNet is taking the next steps in the premium content business by announcing today an all new media distribution network. The MN Open platform offers high quality content for websites of all sizes from niche bloggers to global brands.

MediaNet is delivering easy to install Web Components and an API through the Company’s advanced technology platform, MN Open. Currently MediaNet is offering premium music and music video content, with digital books and video games soon to follow suit.

Alan McGlade, CEO of MediaNet, stated: “MediaNet is delivering the next generation of premium entertainment content services. Our purpose is to reduce friction and create convenience for the consumer. Essentially we have become a “Content Concierge” that presents the appropriate content to an online user when they are predisposed to consuming it.”

Customers can now sign up for the MN Open Web Components and API for free at www.mndigital.com and have a premium content offering with fully customizable features up and running on their website in no time.

MediaNet’s suite of Web Components is easy to install and incorporate into a website with no coding required. Customers copy and paste the code snippets anywhere on their page with their branding front and center. Available in three main categories: contextual matching; commerce and discovery, Web Components features include:

• Media Matcher: Automatically matches MediaNet’s catalog against existing web content
• Media Links: Hyperlinks references to artists, albums and songs within existing content on page
• Relevant Media Search: Integrates into site’s existing search and returns media results alongside regular search results
• Media Explorer: Dynamically displays music-related information with purchasable media
• Media Charts: Charts top selling content to entice music discovery, sampling and purchases
• Media Purchase: Fulfills purchases through an automatically configured and setup component which appears in its dedicated, secure window

With the MN Open API, customers have complete control over the user experience, functionality, e-commerce and a 7 million song and music video catalog with all services delivered under their brand. The API features include:

• Integration into any website or application
• Advanced catalog search capabilities with fuzzy matching
• Access to a portion of or the entire catalog and customize pricing
• Rich metadata for every song, album, and artist
• Use of MediaNet’s e-commerce engine or integration with the customer’s existing e-commerce
• Compatibility with any programming language
• Ability to select and incorporate the features that are just right for a customer’s end users and business model
• REST-based HTTP service

Since introducing these products over the last eight weeks, MediaNet has signed up 25 new customers from social media destinations, kiosk providers and radio stations to musician sites, music blogs and news organizations. For a partial list of customers, go to http://www.mndigital.com/about-us/customers.html.

Hadi Partovi, President, iLike, commented: “MediaNet’s technology made it easy for iLike to roll out an MP3 store in record time. iLike’s in-page MP3 purchase functionality helps keep iLike’s user base on the site, engaged in the discovery and sampling of music, while making the purchasing process easy.”

David Hyman, founder and CEO, MOG, added: “MediaNet has all of the right components we need to launch a streaming music service. A comprehensive catalog, superior back-end technology and the right pricing made it easy for MOG to select MediaNet as our music service provider. The integration process has been excellent and we are very excited about delivering new features for music lovers to interact and engage with MOG.”

Frank Murray, President of Intertech Media remarked: “With more than 1,000 radio station websites under management, Intertech Media is constantly looking for new ways to add value and revenue for our clients. MediaNet’s API and Web Components allow us to advance our mission of providing tools to keep listeners engaged online for longer periods of time with music content that is exciting and relevant. With MediaNet’s advanced platform, we have solved the problem for our clients to stop sending their users outbound to third party sites for music purchasing while creating a more seamless and integrated listening environment.”

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MediaNet’s world-class technology platform, MN Open, offers an API and easy to use Web Components that deliver a set of powerful premium content products including streams, downloads, search, contextual matching and other media discovery tools to engage end users while keeping them on your website or application longer to maximize revenues. MediaNet powers media delivery for brands of all sizes including iLike, Zune, HMV, Tesco, MOG, Ultimate Guitar, Intertech Media and many more.

MediaNet is privately-held and is headquartered in New York with offices in Seattle.

Enhance Your Site with Professional Artist Bios and Album Reviews!

Posted by mnopen | September 8, 2009 8:33 pm | No Comments

Tags: API Updates, Product Updates, Web Component Updates

Last week we published the latest new addition to our Open API which allows you to retrieve professional artist bios and album reviews (Partner.GetAMGData).  This exciting new API in our Partner Package returns the ne plus ultra of metadata about music content:  Artist Bios and/or Album Reviews penned by All Music Guide’s cadre of musicology experts. Quite absorbing and full of interesting anecdotes they also offer plenty of straight-up music criticism. They definitely increase “stickiness” on sites.

One of our easier APIs to use, submit either an Artist MnetID or Album MnetID, or both, to GetAMGData, and if we have something for either, we return it. MediaNet makes available over 40,000 Artist Bios and about 150,000 Album Reviews. Two things MN Open API customers should know:

-       First, we need to track usage, so each response object includes a Google Analytics “urchin” (hidden snippet of JavaScript), and customers must be sure to include it with any placement of a Bio or Review on their site.

-       Second, this enhanced metadata is a value-add, so there are terms and fees, and customers must be configured to gain access to this API. (Contact our business development team to learn more.)

If you’d like to see these Bios and Reviews in action, our own Web Components feature them, so check out our Library: http://www.mndigital.com/products/webcomponents/#Media Explorer. The link provided will take you directly to our Media Explorer Web Component, where Bios and Reviews are showcased. The majority of our Web Components lead to the Media Explorer, so you can start from any to see this great content.

To wrap up, whether you use the MN Open API or our Web Components, there’s now an easy way to start using the professional Bios and Reviews to enhance your site.

MediaNet’s New Download Manager

Posted by mnopen | August 16, 2009 10:05 pm | No Comments

Tags: API Updates, Product Updates, Web Component Updates

MediaNet has recently released its new download manager as part of its MN Open product line.   It is presented to end users in the Media Purchase web component, and is available for API customers to offer for their users as well.

The download manager is a light weight browser plug-in that only needs to be installed once by end users.  Once installed, it facilitates fast concurrent downloads of purchased content.  It provides seamless integration with iTunes and Windows Media Player by automatically adding the content to the user’s preferred player.

Many more features have also been added giving end users great flexibility on their downloads. They are able to check their download history, choose how many tracks are downloaded concurrently, choose download speed, and set the auto download setting.

The user interface is clean, modern and neutral in branding to fit nicely into your own User Interfaces.