7digital announce pan-African licensing agreement through CAPASSO

7digital, a leading global digital music platform, today announced that it has secured a multi-territory licensing agreement via [South] African collection society and licensing agency CAPASSO, covering 40 countries in the region. The agreement encompasses licences for both downloads and streaming and extends 7digital's territory reach to 82 countries for a global catalogue of over 32 million tracks.

Today's announcement further illustrates 7digital's commitment to working with international rightsholders to foster industry growth across all major and emerging markets. Securing and managing musical rights internationally is a core function of 7digital's offering, which currently has them powering music services for clients in North America, Europe, India, Australia, New Zealand, and territories in Latin America, The Middle East and Asia. With rights agreements already in place for South Africa, 7digital have been powering MiTracks (www.mitracks.fm), a popular multi-functional music download service, accessible on Android, iOS, and desktop with multiple payment methods. The rights agreement secured with CAPASSO, will now allow partners to use the 7digital platform for service expansion across the African continent.

"This licence agreement is a world-class deal that secures 7digital's place among the pacesetters in digital musical licensing," commented Simon Cole, CEO of 7digital. "It's a full repertoire blanket licence for forty countries, with a single point for reporting and invoicing – which ensures a simple procedure for managing rights. Securing this type of agreement with licensing agencies is vital to our business and our collaboration with CAPASSO is extremely valuable for our presence in Africa."

Nothando Migogo, CEO of CAPASSO comments, "We support 7digital's mission to reduce the complexity around managing legally licensed music services. There is a huge opportunity for user engagement with music on connected devices in the African region. 7digital entering the market will allow better opportunities for local and international brands to bring music to users efficiently and legally."

The countries included in the agreement include: South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria, Botswana, Malawi, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Swaziland, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, Angola, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Madagascar, Mauritius, Seychelles, Benin, Burkina-Faso, Cape Verde, Chad, Comoros, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Mozambique, Niger, Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Sao Tome e Principe, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Togo, and Uganda.

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About 7digital

7digital are the power behind innovative digital listening experiences. Their robust, scalable technical infrastructure and extensive global rights are used to create comprehensive music and radio services for leading consumer brands, mobile carriers, broadcasters, automotive systems, retailers, record labels, artists and agencies. Alongside proven product knowledge, 7digital offers award-winning radio production and music curation services, superior editorial strategy and content management expertise, making them a leading partner in this space.

7digital fosters industry growth and innovation by simplifying access to music for clients such as Panasonic, Onkyo, Mariposa, Guvera, OpenLIVE, ROK Mobile, and The Overflow. From years of being the largest independent producer of programming for the BBC, launching Radioplayer in multiple territories and powering services for partners like Samsung, BlackBerry and T-Mobile, 7digital is perfectly positioned to lead innovation at the intersection of digital music and next generation radio services.

Visit http://about.7digital.com for more information.

About CAPASSO

The Composers Authors and Publishers Association NPC ("CAPASSO") is a mechanical rights licensing agency based in Johannesburg - South Africa, which collects and distributes royalties to its members: music publishers and composers.

CAPASSO's digital licences cater for all current and future forms of service types such as downloads, ringback tones, streaming, video on-demand and online radio. Its partnership with the South African Music Rights Organisation (SAMRO), accompanied by its established Bureau International de l'Edition Mecanique (BIEM) membership, truly make it a convenient and efficient hub for digital licensing across the African continent.

Visit http://www.capasso.co.za/ for more information.