Rockstar Games and Amazon have teamed up to offer an exclusive new digital music distribution system as part of the upcoming PS3 and Xbox 360 title, Grand Theft Auto IV.

The deal works like this: if you hear a track you like on the game's radio system (which if it's anything like the former ones will be as extensive as it is excellent) you can open the in-game mobile phone and dial the number ZIT-555-0100. Then you get a text message with the song and artist names, and if you've registered at the forthcoming Rockstar Games Social Club community site, you get an email containing a direct link to a custom playlist on Amazon.com

Not exactly iTunes is it? But at least all the songs you purchase through the Amazon system will be DRM free and cost $0.89 - $0.99.

"Music has long played an integral part of the game playing experience," said Ronn Werre, EVP, EMI Music's Sales, Licensing and Synchronization unit. "We think giving players the ability to identify and buy their favourite tracks from Grand Theft Auto IV's popular radio stations is a great new music discovery tool for fans and an innovative new revenue stream for artists."

Ugh. "Integral part of the game playing experience"? "Great new music discovery tool"? "Innovative new revenue stream for artists"? God, I think I'm going to puke.

But as the major record labels and MPAA slowly work their way through closing down every single illegitimate torrent and file sharing site, these appalling gimmicky promotions are what we're going to have to put up with more and more.

Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against the paying money part of it. The artists need money to eat, drink and stumble around over-price London establishments, and the music industry fat cats need money to fatten their feline accessories with, and presumably promote the artists on those rare occasions when they pick out someone that's half decent.

But I do despise the numerous ridiculous ways they come up with to coax you into buying stuff. Frankly this is one of the worst of the bunch. If it involves stopping the game just so that I can waste time penning in an in-game phone number and then getting bombarded by email, rather than, say, waiting till it inevitably comes on the radioagain, I know which I'm choosing.

Not that it matters anyway: the service will only be available to the US. They are welcome to it.

Source
Yahoo

Related posts
Yet more GTA IV multiplayer rumours leaked, this time with screenshots
GTA IV PS3 to cost a fiver more than Xbox 360 version?

Came straight to this page? Visit www.pspsps.tv for all the latest news.