We7 creates ad-free service

16:04 | Wednesday April 8, 2009

We7 is funded by short adverts played at the beginning of each track alongside a paid-for download store. With the new rewards scheme, regular users collect points by spending time on We7 that they can exchange for ad-free days of music.

The reward scheme will be followed in the summer by the launch of a paid-for subscription service for ad-free streamed music. This is likely to cost £9.99 for a month or 99p for a day.

We7 CEO Steve Purdham says, “We7 has seen increasing dynamics that are indicating that ad-supported music can be a significant contributor to the overall music revenue streams. Part of making ad-funded work is providing the consumer with choice, so they control how they consume and pay for music whether it be with money, activity or adverts.”

Both new services are being promoted this Sunday (April 12) in a tie-up with the Daily Star.

In this weekend's newspaper there will be a promotional code giving readers access to ad-free music for a month from We7’s library of 3.5m songs. The promotion applies to tracks, albums and playlists on the site.

We7 was set up in 2007 and has around 500,000 registered users in the UK.