MTV to let (almost) anyone upload tracks for Rock Band

MTV has announced plans for something called the Rock Band Network, which will launch later this year. It will allow any artist, signed or unsigned, to submit their songs to be made available to download and play within the Rock Band console game. Labels and artists will submit songs, which will then be converted for Rock Band by accredited firms trained by the game’s developer Harmonix (a sister Viacom owned firm) – although labels can get the training too to bring those skills in-house. It will vastly increase the number of downloadable tracks available through the game – currently limited to around 10 a week. The new wave of tracks will be made available through a separate download store to the existing Rock Band store.This news follows MTV’s recent decision to hire games industry veterans Scott Guthrie and David Cox (from THQ and Sony respectively) to run its gaming division. While this move was intended to diversify the division beyond its hit Rock Band franchise it is clear that developing the existing music strategy will remain a key focus point.The