Napster sheds 'pirate' image in Nasdaq listing

Napster, the name that once was a symbol of rampant music piracy, has completed its transformation to respectability by becoming a publicly traded company on the Nasdaq exchange.

Napster is being traded under the NAPS symbol on the electronic stock exchange, reflecting a name change by the company that bought the service, Roxio.

But the new company is a far cry from the old Napster, which had as many as 70 million members freely trading music files and pioneered the effort to use the Internet as a music service.

The old Napster was forced into bankruptcy in 2001 after a series of lawsuits by the music industry, which accused the site of being a hub for exchange of copyright-protected music.

Music software maker Roxio acquired the name and assets of Napster in 2002 for $US5 million in cash plus stock.

It has converted it into a fee-based web site that allows subscribers to legally download music files.

Subsequently, Roxio sold off its software division and decided to concentrate on online music, changing the company name to Napster.

In a statement, the Los Angeles-based firm said it expected revenues of $US11 million in the quarter ended December 31.

"Napster created the first on-line music service, the first combination subscription and download service and the first portable subscription service," Chris Gorog, chairman and chief executive, said.

"We are proud today to continue Napster's tradition of innovation by becoming the first pure-play public digital music company in the nation.

"With analysts projecting multi-billion dollar sales for this sector, we are very confident in Napster's strategic position and are very excited about our future."


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