<s>
The	O
online	O
service	O
imeem	B-Application
was	O
a	O
social	O
media	O
website	O
where	O
users	O
interacted	O
with	O
each	O
other	O
by	O
streaming	O
,	O
uploading	O
and	O
sharing	O
music	O
and	O
music	O
videos	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
operated	O
from	O
2003	O
until	O
2009	O
when	O
it	O
was	O
shut	O
down	O
after	O
being	O
acquired	O
by	O
MySpace	B-Application
.	I-Application
</s>
<s>
The	O
company	O
was	O
founded	O
in	O
2003	O
by	O
Dalton	O
Caldwell	O
(	O
formerly	O
of	O
VA	O
Linux	B-Application
)	O
and	O
Jan	O
Jannink	O
(	O
formerly	O
of	O
Napster	B-Application
)	O
,	O
and	O
many	O
of	O
its	O
core	O
engineering	O
team	O
came	O
from	O
the	O
original	O
Napster	B-Application
file-sharing	O
service	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Helping	O
to	O
pioneer	O
the	O
free	O
,	O
advertising-supported	O
model	O
for	O
online	O
music	O
,	O
imeem	B-Application
permitted	O
consumers	O
to	O
legally	O
upload	O
,	O
stream	O
and	O
share	O
music	O
and	O
music	O
playlists	O
for	O
free	O
with	O
the	O
costs	O
supported	O
by	O
advertising	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2007	O
,	O
imeem	B-Application
became	O
the	O
first-ever	O
online	O
music	O
site	O
to	O
secure	O
licenses	O
from	O
all	O
four	O
U.S.	O
major	O
music	O
labels	O
to	O
offer	O
their	O
music	O
catalogs	O
for	O
free	O
streaming	O
and	O
sharing	O
on	O
the	O
web	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
People	O
could	O
use	O
imeem	B-Application
's	O
widgets	O
to	O
embed	O
songs	O
and	O
playlists	O
from	O
imeem	B-Application
virtually	O
anywhere	O
on	O
the	O
web	O
,	O
including	O
on	O
their	O
MySpace	B-Application
and	O
Facebook	B-Application
profiles	O
or	O
on	O
their	O
personal	O
blogs	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Headquartered	O
in	O
San	O
Francisco	O
's	O
South	O
of	O
Market	O
district	O
(	O
SoMa	O
)	O
,	O
imeem	B-Application
had	O
additional	O
offices	O
in	O
New	O
York	O
City	O
and	O
Los	O
Angeles	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
December	O
8	O
,	O
2009	O
,	O
imeem	B-Application
was	O
bought	O
out	O
by	O
MySpace	B-Application
Music	O
in	O
a	O
firesale	O
for	O
an	O
undisclosed	O
amount	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Revenue	O
generation	O
at	O
imeem	B-Application
was	O
through	O
a	O
combination	O
of	O
direct	O
and	O
indirect	O
advertising	O
sales	O
,	O
sales	O
of	O
MP3	B-Application
downloads	I-Application
,	O
ringtones	O
and	O
concert	O
tickets	O
,	O
and	O
subscription	O
revenue	O
from	O
premium	O
services	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
bulk	O
of	O
its	O
revenue	O
came	O
from	O
advertising	O
;	O
advertisers	O
who	O
ran	O
direct	O
campaigns	O
with	O
imeem	B-Application
included	O
TheTruth.com/American	O
Legacy	O
Foundation	O
,	O
Kia	O
Motors	O
,	O
and	O
Dr	O
Pepper	O
,	O
among	O
others	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2007	O
,	O
imeem	B-Application
became	O
the	O
first-ever	O
online	O
music	O
site	O
to	O
secure	O
licenses	O
from	O
all	O
4	O
major	O
music	O
labels	O
to	O
offer	O
their	O
music	O
catalogs	O
for	O
free	O
streaming	O
and	O
sharing	O
on	O
the	O
web	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Under	O
this	O
model	O
,	O
artists	O
and	O
labels	O
were	O
paid	O
a	O
share	O
of	O
imeem	B-Application
's	O
ad	O
revenue	O
in	O
proportion	O
to	O
the	O
popularity	O
of	O
their	O
music	O
on	O
imeem	B-Application
,	O
and	O
had	O
the	O
right	O
to	O
register	O
their	O
content	O
and	O
determine	O
how	O
(	O
or	O
whether	O
)	O
that	O
content	O
is	O
available	O
on	O
the	O
site	O
or	O
through	O
its	O
embeddable	O
widgets	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
business	O
model	O
was	O
made	O
possible	O
by	O
imeem	B-Application
's	O
proprietary	O
content	O
fingerprinting	O
and	O
digital	O
registry	O
technology	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Initially	O
,	O
imeem	B-Application
licensed	O
this	O
technology	O
from	O
SNOCAP	O
,	O
the	O
digital	O
rights	O
and	O
content	O
management	O
startup	O
founded	O
by	O
Napster	B-Application
creator	O
Shawn	O
Fanning	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2008	O
,	O
imeem	B-Application
acquired	O
SNOCAP	O
and	O
its	O
technology	O
outright	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
imeem	B-Application
continued	O
to	O
operate	O
the	O
SNOCAP	O
digital	O
registry	O
,	O
and	O
used	O
the	O
technology	O
acquired	O
from	O
SNOCAP	O
to	O
power	O
its	O
ad-supported	O
streaming	O
music	O
service	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
company	O
provided	O
two	O
main	O
services	O
:	O
imeem.com,	O
where	O
people	O
could	O
discover	O
,	O
stream	O
and	O
share	O
music	O
and	O
music	O
videos	O
for	O
free	O
,	O
and	O
imeem	B-Application
Mobile	O
,	O
an	O
Internet	O
radio	O
service	O
for	O
mobile	O
devices	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
addition	O
,	O
the	O
company	O
offered	O
a	O
premium	O
service	O
,	O
imeem	B-Application
VIP	O
,	O
that	O
gave	O
people	O
access	O
to	O
additional	O
features	O
on	O
the	O
imeem	B-Application
site	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Registered	O
users	O
of	O
the	O
site	O
could	O
stream	O
and	O
share	O
millions	O
of	O
songs	O
and	O
tens	O
of	O
thousands	O
of	O
music	O
videos	O
free	O
of	O
charge	O
,	O
with	O
the	O
costs	O
for	O
licensing	O
and	O
streaming	O
supported	O
by	O
advertising	O
on	O
the	O
site	O
and	O
on	O
imeem	B-Application
Mobile	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
One	O
of	O
imeem	B-Application
's	O
key	O
features	O
was	O
the	O
playlist	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
could	O
publish	O
and	O
share	O
these	O
playlists	O
on	O
imeem	B-Application
,	O
where	O
they	O
could	O
be	O
played	O
by	O
,	O
shared	O
with	O
,	O
commented	O
on	O
,	O
or	O
tagged	O
by	O
other	O
users	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Visitors	O
could	O
also	O
share	O
music	O
,	O
videos	O
and	O
playlists	O
beyond	O
imeem	B-Application
,	O
either	O
by	O
embedding	O
imeem	B-Application
players	O
into	O
external	O
sites	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
With	O
the	O
free	O
cell	O
phone	O
application	O
imeem	B-Application
Mobile	O
,	O
users	O
could	O
discover	O
,	O
purchase	O
and	O
enjoy	O
music	O
on	O
their	O
mobile	O
device	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
available	O
as	O
a	O
free	O
download	O
to	O
users	O
on	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
and	O
iPhone/iPod	O
Touch	O
platforms	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Users	O
could	O
create	O
custom	O
Internet	O
radio	O
stations	O
based	O
on	O
their	O
favorite	O
artists	O
,	O
discover	O
new	O
music	O
through	O
personalized	O
recommendations	O
and	O
buy	O
DRM-free	O
MP3	B-Application
downloads	I-Application
directly	O
onto	O
their	O
mobile	O
device	O
(	O
on	O
Android	B-Application
,	O
downloads	O
are	O
from	O
the	O
Amazon	O
MP3	B-Application
application	O
;	O
on	O
the	O
iPhone	B-Device
and	O
iPod	B-Device
Touch	I-Device
,	O
downloads	O
are	O
from	O
the	O
iTunes	O
Store	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
app	O
also	O
enabled	O
people	O
to	O
browse	O
and	O
stream	O
their	O
personal	O
imeem	B-Application
music	O
libraries	O
to	O
their	O
mobile	O
device	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
People	O
could	O
upload	O
up	O
to	O
20,000	O
songs	O
of	O
the	O
music	O
they	O
own	O
directly	O
to	O
imeem.com,	O
and	O
then	O
access	O
that	O
music	O
through	O
their	O
mobile	O
devices	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
To	O
upload	O
more	O
than	O
100	O
songs	O
,	O
users	O
had	O
to	O
subscribe	O
to	O
one	O
of	O
imeem	B-Application
's	O
premium	O
services	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
company	O
introduced	O
imeem	B-Application
Mobile	O
on	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
platform	I-Application
in	O
October	O
2008	O
,	O
and	O
launched	O
it	O
for	O
iPhone	B-Device
and	O
iPod	B-Device
Touch	I-Device
users	O
in	O
May	O
2009	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
At	O
launch	O
,	O
it	O
was	O
the	O
only	O
streaming	O
music	O
application	O
on	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
platform	I-Application
,	O
which	O
in	O
turn	O
led	O
to	O
it	O
being	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
most	O
popular	O
applications	O
installed	O
on	O
Android	B-Application
devices	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
June	O
2009	O
,	O
imeem	B-Application
Mobile	O
crossed	O
a	O
milestone	O
of	O
over	O
1	O
million	O
installs	O
on	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
and	O
iPhone	B-Device
platforms	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
application	O
received	O
several	O
awards	O
,	O
including	O
a	O
2009	O
Crunchie	O
Award	O
for	O
Best	O
Mobile	O
Application	O
,	O
the	O
Editor	O
's	O
Choice	O
award	O
from	O
the	O
blog	O
AndroidGuys	O
,	O
and	O
an	O
award	O
for	O
'	O
Best	O
Streaming	O
Music	O
App	O
 '	O
in	O
the	O
2009	O
Android	B-Application
Network	O
Awards	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2008	O
,	O
imeem	B-Application
launched	O
a	O
premium	O
imeem	B-Application
VIP	O
service	O
that	O
gave	O
subscribers	O
access	O
to	O
additional	O
site	O
features	O
,	O
most	O
prominently	O
the	O
ability	O
to	O
upload	O
more	O
music	O
(	O
over	O
100	O
songs	O
)	O
,	O
and	O
to	O
watch	O
videos	O
up	O
to	O
1080p	O
in	O
resolution	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
There	O
were	O
three	O
imeem	B-Application
VIP	O
subscription	O
tiers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
*	O
The	O
imeem	B-Application
"	O
VIP	O
"	O
plans	O
started	O
at	O
US$	O
$9.99	O
per	O
year	O
for	O
the	O
"	O
VIP	O
Lite	O
"	O
plan	O
,	O
which	O
gave	O
subscribers	O
access	O
to	O
streaming	O
songs	O
through	O
the	O
VIP	O
Player	O
,	O
and	O
480p	O
video	O
(	O
up	O
from	O
360p	O
for	O
basic	O
users	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
imeem	B-Application
service	O
has	O
changed	O
drastically	O
since	O
its	O
original	O
inception	O
as	O
a	O
messaging	O
application	O
that	O
let	O
people	O
communicate	O
by	O
online	B-Protocol
chat	I-Protocol
,	O
blogging	O
,	O
instant	B-Application
messaging	I-Application
and	O
file	O
sharing	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
service	O
was	O
billed	O
as	O
a	O
"	O
distributed	B-Architecture
,	O
peer-to-peer	O
,	O
social	O
network	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Founder	O
Dalton	O
Caldwell	O
began	O
working	O
on	O
what	O
would	O
become	O
the	O
imeem	B-Application
messaging	O
application	O
during	O
Thanksgiving	O
weekend	O
in	O
2003	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2004	O
,	O
imeem	B-Application
moved	O
into	O
offices	O
in	O
downtown	O
Palo	O
Alto	O
's	O
285	O
Hamilton	O
building	O
,	O
with	O
Caldwell	O
,	O
Jannink	O
and	O
a	O
small	O
team	O
of	O
engineers	O
continuing	O
work	O
on	O
the	O
software	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
When	O
imeem	B-Application
first	O
launched	O
,	O
to	O
use	O
the	O
service	O
,	O
users	O
were	O
required	O
to	O
download	O
and	O
install	O
the	O
desktop	O
messaging	O
and	O
file-sharing	O
software	O
;	O
the	O
imeem	B-Application
Web	O
site	O
merely	O
existed	O
as	O
a	O
means	O
for	O
users	O
to	O
register	O
and	O
download	O
the	O
client	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
client	O
software	O
supported	O
the	O
service	O
's	O
distributed	B-Architecture
database	O
model	O
:	O
Every	O
imeem	B-Application
client	O
on	O
the	O
network	O
had	O
a	O
database	O
that	O
would	O
generate	O
and	O
store	O
references	O
to	O
media	O
content	O
shared	O
on	O
the	O
network	O
;	O
this	O
system	O
would	O
accelerate	O
access	O
to	O
content	O
deemed	O
to	O
be	O
close	O
to	O
the	O
user	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
March	O
2006	O
,	O
imeem	B-Application
re-launched	O
at	O
the	O
South	O
by	O
Southwest	O
(	O
SXSW	O
)	O
conference	O
in	O
Austin	O
,	O
Texas	O
,	O
with	O
a	O
new	O
focus	O
on	O
enabling	O
people	O
to	O
interact	O
through	O
the	O
imeem.com	B-Application
website	O
,	O
using	O
media	O
(	O
photos	O
,	O
videos	O
,	O
music	O
)	O
to	O
express	O
their	O
personalities	O
and	O
interests	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Timed	O
to	O
coincide	O
with	O
the	O
re-launch	O
,	O
imeem	B-Application
introduced	O
new	O
features	O
enabling	O
users	O
to	O
upload	O
and	O
play	O
music	O
and	O
video	O
on	O
the	O
site	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
September	O
2006	O
,	O
imeem	B-Application
introduced	O
embeddable	O
Adobe	O
Flash-based	O
playlists	O
that	O
gave	O
people	O
the	O
ability	O
to	O
take	O
music	O
and	O
video	O
playlists	O
they	O
created	O
(	O
or	O
found	O
)	O
on	O
the	O
site	O
and	O
embed	O
them	O
virtually	O
anywhere	O
on	O
the	O
web	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
company	O
's	O
players	O
quickly	O
became	O
popular	O
with	O
consumers	O
using	O
MySpace	B-Application
and	O
other	O
social	O
networks	O
,	O
giving	O
them	O
a	O
way	O
to	O
customize	O
&	O
personalize	O
their	O
profiles	O
with	O
music	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
a	O
result	O
,	O
imeem	B-Application
quickly	O
gained	O
traction	O
,	O
with	O
the	O
site	O
's	O
traffic	O
growing	O
to	O
10	O
million	O
unique	O
monthly	O
users	O
by	O
the	O
end	O
of	O
2006	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
By	O
March	O
2007	O
,	O
imeem	B-Application
's	O
monthly	O
traffic	O
reached	O
over	O
16	O
million	O
unique	O
monthly	O
users	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
February	O
2007	O
,	O
MySpace	B-Application
took	O
steps	O
to	O
limit	O
the	O
posting	O
of	O
imeem	B-Application
content	O
on	O
its	O
site	O
:	O
any	O
updates	O
or	O
comments	O
with	O
"	O
imeem	B-Application
"	O
even	O
mentioned	O
in	O
them	O
were	O
removed	O
upon	O
posting	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
MySpace	B-Application
stopped	O
blocking	O
imeem	B-Application
in	O
2008	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
March	O
2007	O
,	O
imeem	B-Application
announced	O
it	O
was	O
partnering	O
with	O
SNOCAP	O
,	O
the	O
digital	O
rights	O
and	O
content	O
management	O
startup	O
founded	O
by	O
Napster	B-Application
creator	O
Shawn	O
Fanning	O
,	O
to	O
enable	O
legal	O
uploading	O
,	O
streaming	O
and	O
sharing	O
of	O
music	O
on	O
imeem	B-Application
,	O
utilizing	O
SNOCAP	O
's	O
content	O
fingerprinting	O
and	O
digital	O
registry	O
technology	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
partnership	O
marked	O
imeem	B-Application
's	O
move	O
to	O
an	O
ad-supported	O
model	O
,	O
in	O
which	O
consumers	O
could	O
freely	O
stream	O
and	O
share	O
music	O
and	O
video	O
content	O
with	O
the	O
costs	O
supported	O
by	O
advertising	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Under	O
this	O
model	O
,	O
artists	O
and	O
labels	O
are	O
paid	O
a	O
share	O
of	O
the	O
site	O
's	O
ad	O
revenue	O
in	O
proportion	O
to	O
the	O
popularity	O
of	O
their	O
music	O
on	O
imeem	B-Application
,	O
and	O
have	O
the	O
right	O
to	O
register	O
their	O
content	O
and	O
determine	O
whether	O
that	O
content	O
is	O
available	O
on	O
the	O
site	O
or	O
through	O
its	O
embeddable	O
widgets	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Ultimately	O
,	O
the	O
imeem	B-Application
messaging	O
and	O
file-sharing	O
application	O
had	O
proven	O
to	O
be	O
something	O
of	O
a	O
resource	O
hog	O
for	O
power-users	O
,	O
since	O
the	O
database	O
could	O
grow	O
to	O
large	O
proportions	O
just	O
by	O
associating	O
with	O
a	O
few	O
individuals	O
who	O
were	O
sharing	O
a	O
lot	O
of	O
content	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
While	O
this	O
distributed	B-Architecture
model	O
was	O
interesting	O
and	O
received	O
positive	O
press	O
,	O
it	O
proved	O
to	O
be	O
difficult	O
to	O
attract	O
many	O
users	O
since	O
the	O
only	O
way	O
to	O
participate	O
was	O
to	O
download	O
the	O
imeem	B-Application
client	O
software	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Over	O
time	O
,	O
imeem	B-Application
integrated	O
many	O
of	O
the	O
client	O
's	O
features	O
into	O
its	O
website	O
and	O
the	O
innovative	O
distributed	B-Architecture
database	O
model	O
was	O
centralized	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Throughout	O
the	O
first	O
half	O
of	O
2007	O
,	O
imeem	B-Application
had	O
negotiated	O
with	O
the	O
major	O
labels	O
to	O
secure	O
licenses	O
for	O
this	O
new	O
model	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Warner	O
Music	O
Group	O
and	O
imeem	B-Application
announced	O
a	O
licensing	O
agreement	O
for	O
imeem	B-Application
's	O
new	O
Web-based	O
service	O
in	O
July	O
2007	O
,	O
followed	O
by	O
Sony	O
Music	O
Entertainment	O
and	O
EMI	O
Music	O
in	O
September	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
December	O
2007	O
,	O
imeem	B-Application
signed	O
a	O
licensing	O
agreement	O
with	O
Universal	O
Music	O
Group	O
,	O
becoming	O
the	O
first	O
online	O
music	O
service	O
to	O
partner	O
with	O
all	O
four	O
major	O
music	O
labels	O
to	O
let	O
people	O
legally	O
stream	O
and	O
share	O
music	O
for	O
free	O
online	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
January	O
28	O
,	O
2008	O
,	O
imeem	B-Application
announced	O
that	O
it	O
was	O
acquiring	O
the	O
music	O
locker	O
service	O
Anywhere.FM	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
February	O
1	O
,	O
2008	O
,	O
imeem	B-Application
acquired	O
SNOCAP	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
part	O
of	O
the	O
acquisition	O
,	O
SNOCAP	O
's	O
chief	O
operating	O
officer	O
,	O
Ali	O
Aydar	O
(	O
ex-Napster	O
)	O
,	O
joined	O
imeem	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
March	O
24	O
,	O
2008	O
imeem	B-Application
announced	O
the	O
launch	O
of	O
a	O
developer	O
's	O
platform	O
that	O
will	O
permit	O
third-party	O
developers	O
to	O
interact	O
with	O
imeem	B-Application
data	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
April	O
2008	O
,	O
imeem	B-Application
received	O
a	O
new	O
round	O
of	O
funding	O
from	O
Sequoia	O
Capital	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
October	O
2008	O
,	O
imeem	B-Application
launched	O
imeem	B-Application
Mobile	O
,	O
a	O
free	O
mobile	O
music	O
application	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
company	O
's	O
troubles	O
continued	O
into	O
2009	O
,	O
as	O
Warner	O
Music	O
wrote	O
off	O
its	O
entire	O
$15	O
million	O
investment	O
in	O
imeem	B-Application
in	O
anticipation	O
that	O
no	O
return	O
would	O
come	O
of	O
it	O
and	O
at	O
the	O
same	O
time	O
Warner	O
did	O
n't	O
extend	O
their	O
licensensing	O
with	O
Imeem	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Sources	O
told	O
TechCrunch	O
that	O
imeem	B-Application
raised	O
$6	O
million	O
in	O
this	O
most	O
recent	O
funding	O
round	O
,	O
with	O
Morgenthaler	O
Ventures	O
and	O
Warner	O
Music	O
Group	O
among	O
those	O
investing	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
company	O
launched	O
imeem	B-Application
Mobile	O
for	O
the	O
iPhone	B-Device
and	O
iPod	B-Device
Touch	I-Device
in	O
May	O
2009	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
June	O
2009	O
,	O
imeem	B-Application
Mobile	O
crossed	O
a	O
milestone	O
of	O
over	O
1	O
million	O
installs	O
on	O
the	O
Android	B-Application
and	O
iPhone	B-Device
platforms	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
June	O
25	O
,	O
2009	O
,	O
imeem	B-Application
announced	O
that	O
it	O
was	O
removing	O
all	O
user-uploaded	O
video	O
and	O
photos	O
from	O
the	O
site	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
October	O
2009	O
,	O
imeem	B-Application
and	O
Google	O
announced	O
the	O
integration	O
of	O
links	O
to	O
music	O
on	O
imeem	B-Application
within	O
Google	O
search	O
results	O
;	O
imeem	B-Application
was	O
one	O
of	O
several	O
online	O
music	O
companies	O
involved	O
in	O
such	O
efforts	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
December	O
8	O
,	O
2009	O
,	O
MySpace	B-Application
(	O
owned	O
by	O
News	O
Corporation	O
)	O
acquired	O
imeem	B-Application
,	O
and	O
angered	O
many	O
imeem	B-Application
users	O
when	O
the	O
new	O
parent	O
company	O
closed	O
down	O
the	O
beleaguered	O
service	O
on	O
the	O
same	O
day	O
,	O
redirecting	O
all	O
imeem	B-Application
traffic	O
to	O
MySpace	B-Application
Music	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Furthermore	O
,	O
MySpace	B-Application
social	O
network	O
did	O
not	O
pay	O
artists	O
or	O
labels	O
the	O
money	O
still	O
owed	O
to	O
them	O
by	O
imeem	B-Application
for	O
music	O
streaming	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
controversial	O
closure	O
was	O
criticized	O
as	O
a	O
sign	O
that	O
MySpace	B-Application
was	O
out	O
of	O
touch	O
with	O
the	O
times	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
MySpace	B-Application
,	O
on	O
December	O
22	O
,	O
2009	O
,	O
assured	O
imeem.com	B-Application
users	O
that	O
their	O
playlists	O
are	O
safe	O
and	O
that	O
they	O
are	O
currently	O
duplicating	O
every	O
user	O
's	O
playlist	O
and	O
will	O
migrate	O
them	O
on	O
to	O
MySpace	B-Application
Music	O
as	O
soon	O
as	O
possible	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
MySpace	B-Application
assured	O
that	O
features	O
and	O
functionality	O
that	O
users	O
were	O
used	O
to	O
at	O
imeem	B-Application
would	O
soon	O
find	O
their	O
way	O
onto	O
MySpace	B-Application
,	O
and	O
complement	O
the	O
existing	O
platform	O
alongside	O
free	O
full-song	O
streaming	O
,	O
artist	O
profiles	O
,	O
music	O
videos	O
,	O
and	O
more	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
MySpace	B-Application
will	O
email	O
imeem	B-Application
users	O
the	O
instructions	O
on	O
how	O
to	O
claim	O
their	O
playlists	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
January	O
15	O
,	O
2010	O
,	O
MySpace	B-Application
began	O
allowing	O
users	O
to	O
import	O
imeem	B-Application
playlists	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
However	O
,	O
songs	O
that	O
are	O
currently	O
not	O
available	O
via	O
MySpace	B-Application
Music	O
were	O
not	O
converted	O
over	O
,	O
and	O
there	O
was	O
no	O
means	O
provided	O
to	O
even	O
recover	O
the	O
names	O
of	O
the	O
missing	O
tracks	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
back-end	O
software	O
for	O
imeem	B-Application
's	O
services	O
was	O
primarily	O
written	O
in	O
C#	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
While	O
most	O
of	O
the	O
front-end	O
Web	O
servers	O
ran	O
under	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Windows	I-Application
,	O
some	O
used	O
the	O
Linux	B-Application
operating	I-Application
system	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Web	O
site	O
heavily	O
used	O
Ajax	B-General_Concept
programming	I-General_Concept
and	O
Flash	B-Operating_System
animation	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Audio	O
streams	O
were	O
delivered	O
as	O
128kbps-quality	O
MPEG-2	B-Application
Audio	I-Application
Layer	I-Application
III	I-Application
(	O
MP3	B-Application
)	O
format	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Video	O
was	O
encoded	O
in	O
the	O
Sorenson	O
Video	O
codec	B-General_Concept
at	O
>700kbit	O
/s	O
,	O
in	O
the	O
Flash	B-Operating_System
Video	I-Operating_System
(	O
FLV	B-Operating_System
)	O
container	O
format	O
,	O
with	O
resolution	O
resized	O
to	O
400	O
pixels	O
wide	O
and	O
preserving	O
its	O
aspect	O
ratio	O
,	O
and	O
with	O
embedded	O
mp3	B-Application
audio	I-Application
at	O
96kbit/s	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
While	O
the	O
video	O
quality	O
and	O
resolution	O
was	O
significantly	O
better	O
than	O
other	O
video	O
sites	O
at	O
that	O
time	O
(	O
YouTube	O
,	O
for	O
example	O
,	O
used	O
300kbit/s	O
video	O
)	O
the	O
late-arriving	O
video	O
sharing	O
aspect	O
of	O
imeem	B-Application
was	O
largely	O
eclipsed	O
by	O
the	O
original	O
audio	O
sharing	O
component	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
2008	O
imeem	B-Application
upgraded	O
the	O
video	O
quality	O
further	O
and	O
became	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
first	O
media	O
sharing	O
sites	O
to	O
offer	O
video	O
encoded	O
with	O
the	O
MPEG	B-Application
4	I-Application
H.264	I-Application
codec	B-General_Concept
and	O
at	O
the	O
original	O
source	O
resolution	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
original	O
imeem	B-Application
client	O
software	O
conducted	O
most	O
of	O
its	O
network	O
activity	O
using	O
an	O
encrypted	O
protocol	O
,	O
making	O
it	O
difficult	O
to	O
monitor	O
user	O
activity	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Thus	O
,	O
conversations	O
via	O
the	O
client	O
's	O
IM	O
functionality	O
and	O
group	O
chats	B-Protocol
were	O
encrypted	O
and	O
only	O
visible	O
to	O
participants	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Warner	O
Music	O
Group	O
announced	O
on	O
July	O
12	O
,	O
2007	O
that	O
it	O
had	O
dropped	O
its	O
copyright	O
infringement	O
lawsuit	O
against	O
imeem	B-Application
by	O
agreeing	O
to	O
license	O
its	O
music	O
and	O
video	O
content	O
to	O
the	O
site	O
for	O
a	O
percentage	O
of	O
imeem	B-Application
's	O
advertising	O
revenue	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Under	O
the	O
agreement	O
,	O
imeem	B-Application
could	O
carry	O
music	O
and	O
videos	O
from	O
all	O
of	O
the	O
record	O
company	O
's	O
artists	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Warner	O
also	O
released	O
financial	O
statements	O
indicating	O
that	O
it	O
invested	O
$15	O
million	O
into	O
imeem	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Users	O
of	O
imeem	B-Application
could	O
link	O
to	O
each	O
other	O
through	O
topic	O
groups	O
(	O
which	O
were	O
originally	O
called	O
meems	O
)	O
,	O
based	O
on	O
common	O
interests	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
meems	O
were	O
created	O
by	O
imeem	B-Application
itself	O
,	O
while	O
others	O
were	O
user-generated	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Meems	O
could	O
serve	O
as	O
basic	O
online	B-Architecture
communities	I-Architecture
for	O
artists	O
,	O
bands	O
,	O
clubs	O
,	O
films	O
,	O
schools	O
,	O
festivals	O
,	O
concert	O
tours	O
,	O
friends	O
,	O
and	O
sports	O
enthusiasts	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
After	O
the	O
transition	O
to	O
the	O
Web-only	O
service	O
model	O
,	O
it	O
became	O
impossible	O
for	O
users	O
to	O
add	O
(	O
or	O
even	O
remove	O
)	O
such	O
links	O
,	O
although	O
official	O
imeem-created	O
groups	O
sometimes	O
had	O
links	O
added	O
at	O
creation	O
time	O
,	O
by	O
an	O
administrative	O
means	O
not	O
available	O
to	O
subscribers	O
.	O
</s>
