iLike launches ad platform, pushes play on Rhapsody deal
In addition to now offering full-length streaming songs on its site, the music social network has also surpassed 30 million users.
iLike, the social music service that rose to popularity with the launch of Facebook's developer platform last year, is getting bigger. The company announced that membership has surpassed 30 million users, and that it'll soon be getting the buzz out even more by letting developers put music on their sites through an iLike application programming interface.
But more importantly (i.e. on the money front), iLike has launched an ad platform specifically geared toward bands and concert promoters. Audiences can be targeted by music preferences and location, rather than keywords, which iLike says will give advertisers a huge advantage. (Think about it: how many people who quote Britney Spears on their social-networking profiles actually would want to go to one of her concerts?)
Finally, iLike has launched the partnership with Rhapsody that was announced earlier this month. Members can now stream songs in full length (rather than 30-second previews) 25 times, and after that they're invited to register for Rhapsody accounts. That's currently only live on iLike.com, but the company is working on integrating it with its wildly popular Facebook app soon.