(CelebrityAccess News Service) — RealNetworks, the global leader in digital media services and software for consumers and businesses, says that consumer usage of RHAPSODY, the #1 music subscription service, jumped sharply again in September, driven by increased consumer interest in the service as the successor to illegal file-sharing. RHAPSODY subscribers streamed more than 21 million on-demand songs in September, an average rate of over 700,000 songs per day and an increase of more than 30% in subscribers' on-demand listening since August. Since April, RHAPSODY subscribers have streamed more than 75 million songs on-demand, with month-to- month usage of the service growing continuously during that period.
"More and more consumers are using RHAPSODY to enjoy the music they love without breaking the bank — or the law," said Sean Ryan, vice president of music services, RealNetworks. "RHAPSODY offers the unrestricted access that file-sharing consumers are used to, enabling them to legally listen to hundreds of songs or hundreds of albums for the same low price. That flexibility is helping make RHAPSODY the leading online music service for consumers."
RHAPSODY's growth, together with recent data showing a decline in consumer usage of illicit file-sharing services during the same period, demonstrates that a growing audience of consumers are turning to the service as the best alternative to file-sharing, drawn by its "all you can eat" access model and simple user interface. Users pay just $9.95 for unlimited access to the service's library of more than 28,000 albums. During the month of September RHAPSODY subscribers listened to more than 90% of the service's 385,000-song library.
RHAPSODY's Top 10 artists in September were Johnny Cash, Coldplay, The Rolling Stones, Eminem, 50 Cent, Pink Floyd, Limp Bizkit , John Mayer, Beyonce and Enya. –Bob Grossweiner and Jane Cohen
