By M&C News Jun 1, 2007, 13:54 GMT
Prince is joining the list of other rock icons looking for ways to connect with an audience by giving cell phone users his first single off his upcoming ‘Planet Earth’ album. His new release "Guitar" is now downloadable to Verizon Wireless phones for customers using the service provider's new V Cast song ID feature.
Prince Appears Live on ABC's Good Morning America - Bryant Park - New York, NY © Janet Mayer / Photorazzi
The Verizon deal comes on the heels of the singer’s announcement of a scheduled performance at the Minneapolis branch of department store Macy's. The performance is to promote the launch of Prince’s new fragrance 3121 on July 7th. The public “stunts” are part of a trend by iconic rock stars to try and connect their new music with new fans – such as David Bowie's partnership with a Nokia phone launch in 2006 and Paul McCartney's new album being released through the new Starbucks music label.
Prince fans who have downloaded the V Cast song ID feature will be able to go to various websites (including revver.com, myspace.com or veoh.com) to play the video from the new Prince single. While the video is playing, users hold the phone close by and will be given details about the single and an option to download it wirelessly.
Although Verizon Wireless has made deals with other music names in the past for exclusive song downloads, Prince is probably one of the biggest names the company has snagged to date.
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