Prince, Verizon Wireless match-up

Verizon Wireless, meet Prince, the prolific artist who aggressively protects his fusion of just about every musical genre imaginable. The man whose bitter battle with a record label prompted him to change his name to a symbol for eight years has now inked a deal with the No. 2 carrier to give subscribers a free download of Prince’s new single, “Guitar.”
Verizon Wireless gets something out of the deal too-the new track will be available exclusively through the carrier’s recently launched Vcast Song ID service, which enables customers to identify a song they hear by directing the tune to their cellphone, where they then can purchase the full track. The carrier clearly hopes its deal with Prince, who produces, composes, arranges and performs nearly all of his songs often single-handedly, will drive more customers to the service, which now has a catalog of more than 1.9 million songs.
To identify the track, subscribers will have to download the application then find the video for the new single on the carrier’s Web site or licensed Web sites like YouTube and MySpace.
“When Prince, who has consistently been on the cutting edge of music, harnesses innovative technology to deliver his fresh new music, that’s a tremendous opportunity for music lovers across the country,” said John Stratton, EVP and CMO of Verizon Wireless.
“Prince has always broken new ground, both creatively and the way in which he delivers his music to his fans,” said Michele Anthony, former president and COO of The Sony Music Label Group, and a key member of Prince’s team. “Mobile is rapidly changing the landscape of the music industry and Verizon Wireless is providing artists like Prince with powerful promotion opportunities and direct distribution which gets music into the hands of millions, immediately.”