Former Yahoo! exec rolls out Topspin Media

Mon Jun 23 2008, 14:40 PM UTC+01:00

Topspin Media, an online marketing services firm for musicians, has emerged from stealth mode. The firm, headed by Yahoo!'s former VP for music Ian Rogers, goes live after a year in development, with more services to be rolled out over the coming months.

Topspin's unbranded marketing software - aimed at bands and existing marketing firms - is designed to help musicians connect with fans and build their brands. Eventually the platform will be open to anyone, and is currently being used by selected artists such as the Dandy Warhols and Josh Rouse, who are using it to independently release new material through their websites.

Topspin was founded by former Digidesign president and CEO, Peter Gotcher, and former RealNetworks and Musicmatch employee Shamal Ranasinghe. Rogers left Yahoo! in Apr to join the firm as CEO.

At Yahoo!, Rogers worked to overhaul the company's music policy. Under his management, Yahoo! sold its subscription-based music service to Rhapsody, released a web-based media player and bought browser-based music plugin FoxyTunes. His resignation preceded a number of executive moves at Yahoo!, including nine reported departures over the past week.

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