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 Called Fender Songs, the app taps into machine learning
technology that analyzes songs streamed through Apple Music and
generates chord diagrams for the songs. Fender uses human
auditors to double check the work of computers and has partnered
with major record labels to ensure the accuracy of the charts
and with music publishers to ensure artists are paid for the use
of their lyrics.
The app costs $4.99 per month or $41.99 per year and, in
"play-along" mode will scroll the chords and lyrics across a
player's phone screen as the song streams.
Fender, whose guitars have been played by musicians from Jimi
Hendrix to Jack White, has released four apps over the past two
years in an effort to reach new players and rekindle interest
from existing ones.
Andy Mooney, Fender's chief executive officer, told Reuters
Fender spent nearly two years working out deals with recording
rights holders such as Warner Music Group to ensure the accuracy
of its chord guides and with music publishers Sony/ATV Music
Publishing, Warner Chappell Music, Kobalt and BMG around
songwriter royalties.
"It was critical to us that we be 100% legal when the product
launched - we want to ensure the artists get fairly compensated
for the work," Mooney said.
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The Fender Songs app is starting on Apple devices, in part because
the app relies on Apple Music's existing deals with record labels to
ensure payments are made for each song stream. But Ethan Kaplan,
general manager of Fender Digital, said the company hopes to expand
to other services in the future. Fender has staked its digital
growth strategy on the premise that interest in recorded music is
expanding.
"There's 255 million people paying for streaming now," Kaplan said.
"We want to tackle the whole market."
The digital effort has helped privately held Fender's sales grow in
the "high single digit, low-double digit" percentage rate, and the
company expects to end 2019 "healthily above" $600 million in
revenue, Mooney told Reuters. Fender will spend about 9 percent of
that on marketing, much of it designed to lure new players who came
of age when guitar-dominated music genres like rock were less
popular.
The apps "brought us an incremental swath of new consumers in the
market who hadn't previously considered picking up guitar. The
dealers are reporting that across the board - that new entrants to
the market are coming to their stores and websites," Mooney said.
(Reporting by Stephen Nellis in San Francisco; Editing by David
Gregorio)
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