Newly Released Third-Party Metrics Validate Last.fm is the Fastest-Growing Free Online Music Network in the U.S.

Newly Released Third-Party Metrics Validate Last.fm is the Fastest-Growing Free Online Music Network in the U.S.

Supporting Last.fm's Internal Numbers, Comscore and Nielsen Online Show Free- On-Demand Service Has Spurred Growth and User Engagement

Comscore: Page Views Up 84%, Time Spent on Site Up 118% Month-Over-Month Nielsen Online: Unique Visitors Up 61% with Total Page Views Up 103% Month-Over-Month

NEW YORK and LONDON, March 14 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Last.fm, the CBS Corporation-owned social music Web site, today announced that recently released numbers by Comscore and Nielsen Online show that since it introduced free-on-demand service it has become the fastest growing free online music network in the U.S.

The third-party metrics issued by Comscore and Nielsen Online resemble internal numbers released last month by Last.fm showing the site experienced month-over-month growth across the board in terms of unique visits, page views and total minutes spent on the site.

"Conquering the U.S. market is a crucial step in growing Last.fm, and we are very heartened by the overwhelming response," said Martin Stiksel, co- founder of the site. "These results affirm there is a real demand for Last.fm and the amazing music services we offer. We are establishing our site as the true destination for music lovers across the country."

Comscore metrics show Last.fm's audience has become even more engaged in the last month with page views up 84% and the total minutes spent on the site increasing 118%. Nielsen Online metrics underscore that the free-on-demand service has helped the site reach a broader audience with 61% growth in unique visitors and an l03% increase in page views.

"We're especially pleased that after the initial launch of our new free services, activity and engagement continues to grow so strongly on Last.fm," said Felix Miller, the site's CEO. "Users are not only visiting our site but staying and sampling the services we are offering. These numbers are extremely encouraging, and they prove to us there are significant opportunities for Last.fm in the US market."

In launching the free-on-demand service earlier this year, Last.fm became the first music Web site to offer free, global, on-demand access to the largest licensed catalogue of music built on partnerships with all four major record labels -- Universal Music Group, Sony/BMG, Warner and EMI -- as well as CD Baby, IODA, the Orchard, Naxos and more than 150,000 independent labels and artists.

Last.fm has become one of the leading places in the world where people can go to listen to music online. Its vast library has attracted a community of more than 21 million unique monthly users in 240 countries around the globe. The heart of Last.fm is a powerful recommendation engine that guides listeners to music they are likely to enjoy based on prior selections, connecting them with the music they love and with others who share their tastes. Last.fm's free-on-demand service is advertiser supported, allowing clients many unique opportunities to reach a highly targeted and engaged audience.

Currently, the free-on-demand service is available in the U.S., U.K. and Germany available without registration, or the download of any software, and is scheduled to roll out globally in the coming months.

About Last.fm

Founded in 2002 in London, Last.fm is the online, social music revolution that connects people with music and artists with listeners. By joining the Last.fm community, music fans can choose to share their music preferences by linking their media player to the Last.fm database. This database is populated continually with over 600 million monthly track submissions from Last.fm music fans. As a result, Last.fm can intelligently recommend songs, artists, local concerts and even other members based on their musical tastes. Thanks to partnerships with Universal, EMI, Warner Music Group, Sony BMG, CD Baby, independent aggregators The Orchard and IODA, and more than 150,000 independent artists and labels that upload music directly to the site, Last.fm can draw recommendations from the largest licensed online catalogue of music. From January 2008, Last.fm started offering free-on-demand access to music on the site, without the need to log-in, as well as an unprecedented Artist Royalty program through which unsigned artists can earn revenue directly from Last.fm every time their music streamed.

About CBS Corporation

CBS Corporation (NYSE:CBS.A) (NYSE:and) (NYSE:CBS) is a mass media company with constituent parts that reach back to the beginnings of the broadcast industry, as well as newer businesses that operate on the leading edge of the media industry. The Company, through its many and varied operations, combines broad reach with well-positioned local businesses, all of which provide it with an extensive distribution network by which it serves audiences and advertisers in all 50 states and key international markets. It has operations in virtually every field of media and entertainment, including broadcast television (CBS and The CW -- a joint venture between CBS Corporation and Warner Bros. Entertainment), cable television (Showtime and CSTV Networks), local television (CBS Television Stations), television production and syndication (CBS Paramount Network Television and CBS Television Distribution), radio (CBS Radio), advertising on out-of-home media (CBS Outdoor), publishing (Simon & Schuster), interactive media (CBS Interactive), music (CBS Records), licensing and merchandising (CBS Consumer Products), video/DVD (CBS Home Entertainment), in-store media (CBS Outernet) and motion pictures (CBS Films). For more information, log on to http://www.cbscorporation.com/.

First Call Analyst:
FCMN Contact: KJorgensen@cbs.com
Web site: http://www.cbscorporation.com

Source: CBS Corporation

CONTACT: Shannon Jacobs of CBS - New York, +1-212-975-3161,
sljacobs@cbs.com, or Christian Ward of Last.fm - London, +44-(0)-20-7780-7080,
christian@last.fm

Company News On-Call: http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/185007.html

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Profile: International Entertainment