• by Laurie Sullivan , October 1, 2007

Universal Music Group (UMG) has teamed up with MuseStorm to promote tunes from the late Jimi Hendrix. The three-month-long promotion, which the recording label expects to detail today, gives one lucky Hendrix fan a chance to win an Apple iPhone with an etching from the "Live at Monterey" concert.

Footage from the Jimi Hendrix Experience's classic 1967 Monterey Pop performance will become available on DVD in stores Oct. 16, along with "The Jimi Hendrix Experience Live at Monterey" on CD and vinyl.

For the first time, UMG will promote an artist's music release through a Web widget. "We find that by creating widgets with compelling and relevant content, we can reach a wider audience of core and casual fans with up-to-date information," says Heather Whitten, associate director of new media at Universal Music Enterprises, a division of UMG.

Whitten says Universal Music Group initially plans to target music devotees looking for up-to-the-second information on their favorite artist, but syndicating the widgets should help effectively reach casual fans, too.

Plans are in the works to launch widgets that tie into online ads and promotions for other artists, too, such as Bob Marley. The interactive technology has grown to become an accepted method for advertisers and marketers to promote everything from music to movies and more. Consumers place these interactive mini applications, or widgets, on their desktops to get information on new e-mail, weather and personalized news.

Two-year-old MuseStorm developed the authoring tool that Universal Music Group chose. The widget authoring tool, launched last week at DEMOfall 07 in San Diego, Calif., enables non-techie, yet creative, marketing and advertising professionals to take control of content. They can design, distribute and syndicate audio, video and text widgets across the Web, as well as update content at any time within minutes. Reporting tools also provide ways to measure success.

UMG plans to "measure success by the number of impressions generated," Whitten says. "Because every element of the widget will be traceable, it will also help us define the most relevant and attractive content to offer consumers in promotion of a release."

Today, MuseStorm provides widgets in desktop and Web formats, but by the end of this year it will add mobile and instant messaging.

"We see the world as portable content," says David Reich, vice president/business development at MuseStorm. "I've always wondered why consumer goods companies like Kraft put up a Web site and expect lots of people to come to them when they have an opportunity to go to the consumer with widgets."

Similarly, Google last month gave brand advertisers Google Gadgets as a way to reach out to consumers. The tool helps them deliver an assortment of streaming videos or miniature Web pages without asking the consumer to leave the ad. Google has been testing the format with Pepsi-Cola North America's Sierra Mist, Intel Honda, and Six Flags.