iTunes was announced last week at Steve Jobs’ keynote address, as a free download. As reported Tuesday, the product has been downloaded more than 275,000 times since it was made available to the public.
Gracenote (formerly CDDB), a content delivery platform specializing in music recognition technology, has joined forces with Apple to offer Mac users access to Gracenote’s extensive database through CDDB, according to company spokesperson Sue Ellen Schaming. The company has signed a five-year exclusive agreement with Apple to include its CDDB music recognition service in the operating system for all Mac desktops and laptops.
“Gracenote’s CDDB will empower the Mac to serve as a playback platform for both CDs and digital files,” Schaming said. “The Apple platform will incorporate Gracenote’s industry standard for online music recognition services currently utilized by 98 percent of online media players.”
Gracenote provides its music recognition service to over 20 million individuals monthly. It claims 1,000 licensees in 35 countries, more than 800,000 albums, and 10 million songs in its database.