Shared Media Licensing, operator of the Weed peer-to-peer distribution system, has received an investment of an undisclosed sum from AV Capital, the newly formed private equity arm of Seattle-based marketing firm Airvision.
Weed’s technology enables incentive-driven distribution schemes, in which consumers receive payment or store credit for promoting music to their friends. It also allows consumers to listen to music on a try-before-you-buy basis. After a track is played a few times, the listener is prompted to purchase it.
Weed — which has been used by Chuck D, Heart, Sir Mix-A-Lot, Built To Spill and Kristin Hersh — is being featured in an ongoing music download trial from online auction giant eBay.
