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PRESS RELEASE: Live 8 legend Midge Ure is launching a new revolutionary campaign – but this time his appeal is for a fair deal for new and independent artists. Tunited is a groundbreaking new independent music website which will assist new and independent artists and labels gain increased exposure, challenging the flagging music business' growing reluctance to invest in this exciting area.

Tunited will be a great exponent of new music at all levels from new student musicians right the way through to independent artists and labels with, almost uniquely, all download payments being passed on to the artist. The four cornerstones of Tunited are: Create, Collaborate, Promote and Enjoy.

Create is the music and design creation software, that comes free with Tunited that can help artists to construct their music from scratch, or they can simply upload their existing catalogue.

Collaborate is the community element of the site, where artists can share work, ideas and network, gig-swap and exchange skills to create virtual bands.

Promote covers news, interviews, online concerts, and opportunities for advice and feedback from industry experts, A&Rs and producers.

Enjoy is where you can listen to all the music that Tunited offers its audience, with charts to show which artists are most popular within each musical genre from indie to classical, from wonk to dub-step.

Further unique opportunities and services that will be available to all artists on the website will be announced in the press and online nearer to the launch date of the site; these include sync licensing opportunities, gig promotion and Tunited's ability to leverage lower production costs.

"With Tunited, we're not just opening doors for new artists – we're blowing the doors right off, Italian Job-style! Tunited will be the new music industry", says Midge.

Tunited was first dreamt up by Midge in 2006, after he saw and experienced how the culture of illegal downloading was ruining the industry. "As soon as Napster was launched, it was clear to me that the industry was about to suffer by the shareware and illegal downloading phenomenon. Now, ten years on, we can all see the effects: major labels don't have the money to invest in as many new acts anymore.

"They are taking fewer risks and as a result, new music is being crushed. There's no long term investment in bands anymore. Gone are the days when majors can stump up large advances and take on 20-odd bands in the hope that one would make it. And the few acts they do invest in are given their 15 minutes of fame to prove their existence. If they don't come up with the goods, labels chuck the baby out with the bathwater.

"But without nurturing the fresh talent that's out there, new music won't get heard and the business will kill itself off."

Then, in 2007, thanks to the support of a group of financial backers, the concept of Tunited was born. "I saw a very real need for an online platform to be set up to give opportunities to independent artists and I've been working on the project for the past two years now", says Midge.

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