http://www.alltrack.com

Well, someone went and did it. How well? Waaaaay too early to tell. Hoping these guys show up to the PMC to give an hour long presentation on how they are different than the other 4 US based PRO's.

Very interesting. AllTrack is a direct competitor/alternative to ASCAP, BMI, and SEASAC, right? So if you belong to one of those, you'd need to resign before you could join AllTrack?

Definitely too early for me to jump ship, but I will be keeping an eye on this.

Other four? ASCAP, BMI, and SEASAC, and....?

GMR

Oh, I thought GMR did licensing - had no idea they are PRO-oriented.

Very interesting. From what I can tell, they are trying to be a global PRO (instead of negotiating deals with foreign PROs to collect foreign payments). Not sure how that would work but yeah, it would be very interesting to see how they plan on collecting everything.

The other thing that worries me is they have a "Obtain a License" button. Makes it feel like a VC tech startup that doesn't really understand how that part of the industry actually works (i.e., approaching the big networks like CBS, Netflix, HBO etc and negotiating a license). I can't see someone from ABC, NBC or Netflix just coming on here and clicking "Obtain A License" for what could potentially be a multimillion dollar license.

Interesting. One can only hope....

I'd have way more interest if they were essentially library writer focused. Reads like they are catering to young indie artists who have never been associated with a PRO.

If enough composers from our business contact them and switch their catalogs to them AND Alltrack see the benefits, maybe they would switch their focus, or at least share the focus between indie artists and us composers? I know moving 40k+ of your titles is a nightmare, just thinking out loud.

I'll definitely contact them soon and maybe send them a couple of statements, just to check if they would pay more than ASCAP. As soon as they respond, I'll let you guys know.

Great!! Please do.

Personally, I would prefer it of they would switch their focus first; I don't know if contact by composers being the catalyst for them switching their focus would necessarily be a good thing.

Maybe you're right, but I'd send them some data and check; after all, we still don't know what is their focus, right? We are only guessing at this point...we also have BMI and ASCAP claiming their focus is on all kinds of music and it's uses and we know how it goes with them - words are cheap, let's see if these guys are willing to put some money behind them.

Yeah - I def don't disagree with inquiring. Worth a shot!

I've sent them a note requesting a presentation of some sort on one of the PMC dates. Maybe an evening or morning? Preferences from anyone here? I could arrange to find a space if that makes it more convenient for people.

Nice. Thanks, Vita. At this point I am pretty open, but I prefer mornings as a rule. I am very interested in hearing what they have to say.

Thanks Vita! I might actually entertain a trip over for that....

I'd also ask them what kind of detection system they use and if they accept modern fingerprinting systems (Tunesat, etc.) as a proof of use. My brain is working with 5% now (it's late here), so remind me of other modern detection systems and more stuff I should ask.

That would be great, thanks Vita! Please share the details of a panel here (if it happens), I'll contact them Monday or Tuesday and let you guys know if they answer.

Just an FYI, Alltrack won't be doing a presentation at the PMC. They just launched and don't feel they could give an adequate presentation geared toward the production music crowd in that short amount of time. Seems like they want to do things the right way rather than talk about things they either don't know about or can't promise. We'll have to be patient.

Update: sent them an email 3-4 days ago. I asked them what system they use for tracking music usage, do they accept Tunesat data as a proof (in case they don't use Tunesat already, or similar tracking system) and if it would be ok to send them a couple of statements, to check how much would they pay for same amount and type of usage. Still no answer, I'll keep you guys updated.

AllTrack founder Hayden Bower is a former SESAC board member. Let that sink in