Understanding the effectiveness of information technology, Propellerhead Software aimed to take advantage of the Internet's full potential, and with the expertise of their webmaster, Fredrik Hägglund, the company built several systems to do so. Hägglund's vivid graphic designs and web development skill already bestowed a certain air of "coolness" to the company's website. This coolness was furthered by the implementation of a discussion forum that is known the root of the ReBirth user community.
 The music software industry is still amazed by the culture that formed around RB-338. The Propellerheads, though uncertain how it happened, are immensely grateful for the dedicated fan base that supported them through early years. The pool of creative users inspired the community through ReBirth fan sites and ReBirth Mods. Not only did these contributions increase public interest in RB-338, they helped the company decide how to proceed with future projects. Rather than expect the company to perform market research, the users came to the message board and applied their requests directly to the developers.
The value of information technology had already been proven, not the least of which was providing an effective means to offer upgrades and benefits to ReBirth users. Development of version 1.5 was already under way during ReBirth's release in May of 1997. Zetterquist created a new synchronized filter effect, called the PCF, that would add a new dimension to the sonic palette of the 303 and 808s. This led to the first downloadable ReBirth upgrade in October of 1997. The aggressive pace of development only added to the excitement, attracting new users and intensifying the enthusiasm of existing ones.
April 1997 marks the unveiling of the "Prop Shop," a web-based storefront for Propellerhead software and merchandise. Through their close interaction with the company, prospective customers realized they were dealing with a small organization. Customers could easily purchase ReBirth through mega-retailers, or show their support by ordering directly from Sweden. Although the distribution of ReCycle was handled exclusively through an agreement with Steinberg, direct sales of ReBirth proved to be very successful. |
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In the fall of 1997, the Coca-Cola Company approached Propellerhead Software with a proposal to use ReBirth in marketing campaign for their Cherry Coke soft drink. Reaction to this project could not have been more exciting, especially for a small company riding on the success of viral marketing. Obviously, something they did was "attracting attention from the BIG guys." This project coincided with the latest release of ReBirth 1.5, and seemed like an interesting concept for promotion. The Coca-Cola Company organized an Internet-based ReBirth Song competition, with Propellerhead and Coca-Cola merchandise prizes being offered to the winners.
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In order to accommodate the idea, a special version of ReBirth had to be developed. Fredrik Solenberg had recently joined the Propellerhead development team, and his copy-protection system for ReBirth 1.5 was elaborated upon to create an Internet-accessible verification key. Though initially an interesting technological experiment in network-based copy protection, it later proved to be a nightmare.
The Internet version of ReBirth 1.5 was successfully devised in less than a month, but there was little return on the amount of time and resources expended. While it generated some publicity, the results fell short of expectations. Propellerhead received no direct compensation - "Not even a can of *real* Coke!" - and it became company policy to reject any further co-opted marketing ventures. |
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