MXP4 is an interactive music solution that enables music fans to play with songs in a variety of interactive ways. At its most basic the MXP4 format enables labels and artists to package multimedia content - streaming music, videos, artist biographical information, concert listings, share buttons for sharing across social networks, and merchandise stores - into a single .mxp4 file, which can be accessed and enjoyed as a web-based application. Beyond this, MXP4 applications also offer numerous interactive features enabling users to play with, mix, remix

Remix

A remix is an alternative version of a recorded song, made from an original version. This term is also used for any alterations of media other than song ....

 and sing along with tracks. In January 2010 MXP4 launched an editor application enabling any artist or label to create MXP4 versions of their songs .

History

Based in Paris

Paris

Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...

, the company was founded in 2006 by Gilles Babinet, Sylvain Huet and Philippe Ulrich. Albin Serviant (former GM at Vivendi

Vivendi

Vivendi SA is a French international media conglomerate with activities in music, television and film, publishing, telecommunications, the Internet, and video games. It is headquartered in Paris.- History :...

 Mobile Entertainment and MUSIWAVE CMO) is CEO, whilst industry leading board members include JF Cecillon (former CEO of EMI Music) and Jordan Greenhall (former CEO and Chairman of DivX

DivX

DivX is a brand name of products created by DivX, Inc. , including the DivX Codec which has become popular due to its ability to compress lengthy video segments into small sizes while maintaining relatively high visual quality.There are two DivX codecs; the regular MPEG-4 Part 2 DivX codec and the...

). The company is backed by A‐list investors Sofinnova Partners, Ventech and Orkos Capital .

Since 2006 MXP4 has worked with over 70 labels and artists including Motown, Britney Spears

Britney Spears

Britney Jean Spears is an American recording artist and entertainer. Born in McComb, Mississippi, and raised in Kentwood, Louisiana, Spears began performing as a child, landing acting roles in stage productions and television shows. She signed with Jive Records in 1997 and released her debut album...

, Pink

Pink (singer)

Alecia Beth Moore , better known by her stage name Pink , is an American singer-songwriter, musician and actress....

, Basement Jaxx

Basement Jaxx

Basement Jaxx are a British electronic dance music duo from London, England consisting of Felix Buxton born 1971 and Simon Ratcliffe born 1 December 1969. They first rose to popularity in the late 1990s...

, Bat For Lashes

Bat for Lashes

Natasha Khan , also known by her stage name Bat for Lashes, is an English musician. She sings and plays the piano, bass, guitar, harpsichord and the autoharp....

, Paramore

Paramore

Paramore is an American rock band from Franklin, Tennessee, formed in 2004. The band consists of lead vocalist Hayley Williams, bassist Jeremy Davis, and guitarist Taylor York...

, Pet Shop Boys

Pet Shop Boys

Pet Shop Boys are an English electronic dance music duo, consisting of Neil Tennant, who provides main vocals, keyboards and occasional guitar, and Chris Lowe on keyboards....

 and David Guetta

David Guetta

Pierre David Guetta , known professionally as David Guetta , is a French house music producer and DJ. Originally a DJ at nightclubs during the 1980s and 1990s, he co-founded Gum Productions and released his first album, Just a Little More Love, in 2002. Later, he released Guetta Blaster and Pop Life...

 to create interactive versions of their tracks .

In July 2009 MXP4 teamed up with Motown to release MXP4 versions of classic Jackson 5 songs that allowed fans to strip each track down to its stems – including Michael Jackson

Michael Jackson

Michael Joseph Jackson was an American recording artist, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Pop, or by his initials MJ, Jackson is recognized as the most successful entertainer of all time by Guinness World Records...

's original vocal take – and recombine them to create their own personal mix. At the time, Reuters

Reuters

Reuters is a news agency headquartered in New York City. Until 2008 the Reuters news agency formed part of a British independent company, Reuters Group plc, which was also a provider of financial market data...

 commented that MXP4 "could breathe life into the MP3 format", while the BBC

BBC

The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...

 reported that "letting fans remix, re-record and generally mess around with songs by established artists has given those songs a lucrative new lease of life.”

In October 2009, MXP4 teamed up with David Guetta to launch the first MXP4-powered iPhone

IPhone

The iPhone is a line of Internet and multimedia-enabled smartphones marketed by Apple Inc. The first iPhone was unveiled by Steve Jobs, then CEO of Apple, on January 9, 2007, and released on June 29, 2007...

 app, that allowed fans of the French DJ/producer to remix his track 'When Love Takes Over' on their iPhones.

In January 2010 MXP4 launched a new feature called Max It, which creates remixes of tracks in real-time as you listen, and built a Max It editor that gives any artist the opportunity to create their own interactive music app.

Brand partnerships

In February 2010, MXP4 partnered with Air France

Air France

Air France , stylised as AIRFRANCE, is the French flag carrier headquartered in Tremblay-en-France, , and is one of the world's largest airlines. It is a subsidiary of the Air France-KLM Group and a founding member of the SkyTeam global airline alliance...

 to create an interactive Facebook music application with the band Phoenix

Phoenix (band)

Phoenix is a Grammy Award winning French indie rock band from Versailles, founded by Thomas Mars, Deck d'Arcy, Christian Mazzalai and Laurent Brancowitz.-Formation and early years:...

, to promote the launch of the Air France Music onboard service.

In March 2010, Brand Asset Group built an application for Coca-Cola

Coca-Cola

Coca-Cola is a carbonated soft drink sold in stores, restaurants, and vending machines in more than 200 countries. It is produced by The Coca-Cola Company of Atlanta, Georgia, and is often referred to simply as Coke...

's MyCoke web presence powered by MXP4, offering an interactive version of the song 'Are You Getting Enough Happiness' by Janelle Monae

Janelle Monáe

Janelle Monáe is an American R&B/soul musician signed to Bad Boy Records and Atlantic Records.Monáe debuted with a conceptual EP, Metropolis: Suite I ...

 to the MyCoke community.

In May 2010, MXP4 teamed up with music fan engagement platform FanShake

FanShake

FanShake is a music fan engagement platform which rewards participants for the amount of support and involvement they have with an artist. Based in London, United Kingdom, with an office in Paris, France, FanShake was founded by Dana al-Salem in March 2009...

 that saw the debut of MXP4's Karaoke feature. The partnership gave FanShake users the chance to record their own versions of 'Lost In Berlin', by French Pop Idol

Pop Idol

Pop Idol is a British television series which debuted on ITV on 6 October 2001. The show was a talent contest to decide the best new young pop singer in the United Kingdom, based on viewer voting and participation. Two series were broadcast - one in 2001-02 and a second in 2003...

 winner Christophe Willem

Christophe Willem

Christophe Willem , born on 3 August 1983 in Enghien-les-Bains, Val-d'Oise, is a French singer and the winner of the fourth edition of Nouvelle Star in 2006.-Early life:...

, via their webcams. The performance, captured in real time by the MXP4 Karaoke application, could then be shared with friends.

Features

MXP4 applications offer a number of ways users can play with music rather than simply streaming it from the web.

REMIX IT: enables users to seamlessly transition between remixes of songs via an MXP4 mixer.

SING IT: a karaoke application enabling users to sing along to backing tracks.

MIX IT: enables users to strip the song down to its individual parts, by using the MXP4 mixer to switch off each musical element one by one, and rebuild their own personalised versions.

MAX IT: enables users to create real-time remixes of songs that change each time they press play