[Archive 2010-02-11] "Successor to mp3"; MusicDNA founder interviewed

Historical archive — originally published 2010-02-11. This report records what was known on that date. It is not current news; subsequent events may have changed the situation. Wikinews closed in May 2026.

At the end of January, Bach Technology announced their new music file format, MusicDNA, which was developed as an intended replacement for the mp3 format, which has been the dominant format in music since its inception. MusicDNA uses similar compression methods to mp3, but then also adds an xml file which defines other content that can be included. Wikinews reporter Tristan Thomas caught up with Bach Technology CEO Stefan Kohlmeyer to find out more.

((Stefan Kohlmeyer)) We believe that MusicDNA is the successor to the MP3, the MusicDNA media extension enables music fans to access from one application the wide range of music-related content they want alongside the music itself - from lyrics, artwork and tour dates to blog posts, videos and twitter feeds.

In addition to all this extra content, MusicDNA files are also intelligent, and include extensive audio analysis information for each single track. This means that search and recommendation tools or automatic playlist generators will be much more sophisticated and provide much better results.

((WN)) How long has it been in development and what role has Karlheinz Brandenburg, the man credited with inventing mp3, played in that?

((SK)) In essence MusicDNA in its current context has been in development since the start of the company in 2007. Bach has an important strategic partnership with Fraunhofer IDMT with its CEO Karlheinz Brandenburg who is an important person for us in all research projects and visionary discussions about the development of the music market.

((WN)) Is this just going to be another consumer hurting format war with iTunes LP? What makes MusicDNA better than iTunes LP?

((SK)) Unlike iTunes LP, MusicDNA files have been built on open standards and are completely platform agnostic, which means that, unlike iTunes LP, you’re not tied to one device or media player. So it’s about the opposite of format wars really.

Whilst LP goes some way to adding value to digital music, it is still essentially a static file with some extra content bolted on. MusicDNA not only gives back all the things we lost when we switched to digital formats, lyrics, liner notes, artwork, but crucially it goes beyond that allowing fans to access everything from Twitter feeds and videos through to concert tickets, this will all dynamically update whenever you're online, so music fans always have the latest information to hand.

Importantly with MusicDNA you can customise single tracks, you’re not restricted to purchasing complete albums as you are with LP.

And because all the additional rich media is integrated into the file (unlike iTunes LP), that content can be easily transferred from one device to another.

Source and licence

Text adapted from "Successor to mp3"; MusicDNA founder interviewed by Wikinews contributors under CC BY 2.5. Paragraphs have been selected and abridged, and formatting adjusted. Contributor history.