Qtrax: The Non-Launch

Qtrax, a legal P2P service, has been all over the news for a few days. First came news that the service, free to users and supported by advertising, would launch today. The company played up the launch at the MIDEM conference in France.

Then came word that none of the four major music groups -- EMI, Sony BMG, Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group -- have a licensing deal with Qtrax.

Oops.

The company admitted to its exaggerations. "We are not idiots," said CEO Alan Klepfisz."We wouldn’t have launched the service in front of the whole music industry unless we had secured its backing. We feel we have been unfairly crucified because a competitor tried to damage us." Oh really? There's a big difference between general backing of the business model and the iron-clad legal backing that comes with a contractual agreement.   

There could be a number of reasons for the problem, but labels aren't saying much other than Qtrax does not yet have the proper licensing deals to offer their music on the service. Perhaps the service had changed and the original deals are no longer valid. Maybe Qtrax used the pre-launch media blitz to speed up the negotiation process -- a risky way to force the labels' hands. Or maybe Qtrax isn't very good at paperwork and should have had this taken care of long ago. My money is on the latter.

Here's my best guess: There was no way Qtrax was going to let MIDEM -- the best launching pad it would have for the next 12 months -- to come and go without grabbing the spotlight. So, without licensing deals, it weighed getting no hype at MIDEM versus finalizing the product and launching at a future date. It chose MIDEM as its coming out party and went full steam ahead. Not a textbook way to launch a product. Qtrax has had to publicly admit its original claims (regarding licensed content) were not true, and the press and blogs have got in a few jabs. Those are negatives, though, that can be erased if users see a great product when it's eventually rolled out.

Here's the bad news: My early impression of the site is that it is an unattractive, clumsy service. The site does not yet offer a download of the application, but Qtrax sent me an email this morning with a download link. Installation was fast and easy. Everything after that was a mess. It doesn't help that Qtrax doesn't yet allow for downloading or even streaming. (How can I judge a P2P service without streaming or downloading? Easy. I can tell how good a site is without listening to the music. It's the searching, navigating, indexing and layout that differentiates music services. They all sound the same.)

Had Qtrax thoroughly tested the site, worked out the bugs, cleaned up the rough edges and finalized the proper deals with labels, the launch would be a success. No such luck. Qtrax has teased reporters, techies and some music fans with grandiose promises it may never fulfill. Overcoming that initial stumble will take a lot of time and elbow grease. Eventual users of the product probably aren't aware of what has just transpired, but their perceptions will be shaped by those who have just witnessed this huge misstep.