Rock Band Network

Development

Before the Rock Band Network was announced, Harmonix added roughly 10 songs each week as downloadable content for Rock Band games, consistent with their vision of the series as a music platform favoring digital distribution. By mid-2009, over 50 million songs had been downloaded, but Harmonix realized they could not expand their authoring process without significantly growing the company. Working with Microsoft, they modeled the Network after the XNA Creators Club, which had produced peer-reviewed titles in the Xbox Live Indie Games series.

The model allowed artists and labels to author their own songs into Rock Band tracks, submit them for peer review, and receive a 30% cut of sales. Co-founder Eran Egozy said, "We're changing the way the music industry is working, and we're hoping there's going to be this big community around it." Alex Rigopulos saw the Network as the next form of media for experiencing music, alongside portable music players and concerts. The New York Times reported that the project was internally named "Rock Band: Nickelback" to keep it confidential, but Harmonix senior producer Matthew Nordhaus denied this claim.

History

The Network entered private beta in September 2009. A patch to Rock Band 2 for Xbox 360 in late 2009 added an "Audition" mode for beta testers to try songs. Development tools and documentation were released to the public in early October 2009. Although originally expected to launch in November 2009, the open service was delayed until early 2010.

An open beta began on January 19, 2010, for any Xbox 360 player with an XNA account. The Rock Band Network Store opened on March 4, 2010, with over 100 songs available. T-Mobile sponsored the store, highlighting an "Artist of the Month". Harmonix continued to author songs for regular downloadable content alongside the Network.

Delays were attributed to a lack of internal deadlines and difficulties adapting the XNA system, as well as legal discussions about user-generated content. Limited PlayStation 3 support started on April 22, 2010, with 5 songs offered weekly based on popularity and genre balance. By May 2010, the song count surpassed 400; by August 2010, it exceeded 500, averaging 3 songs per day since launch. Over 9000 users participated in the review process, with more than 700 as track authors or playtesters. Approximately half of demo-mode tracks were subsequently purchased.

Authoring process

To participate, artists needed an XNA Creators Club license for the charting tools. The key authoring program was a modified version of the digital audio workstation REAPER, with custom Harmonix add-ons. It allowed authors to analyze tempo and place notes for each difficulty, and could auto-generate expert-level note tracking for kick and snare drums, though creators had to refine it and create easier difficulties. The "Magma" program converted the song and note data into a playable Rock Band track, generating reasonable animation sequences such as focusing on the guitarist during a solo.

Authors could further customize animations in REAPER, but could not change vocalist lip-synching or control the fog machine. Authors were not required to use REAPER; Magma accepted a MIDI file meeting documented specifications. Harmonix estimated that authoring a single track took 20 to 40 hours for a newcomer. All submissions underwent peer review for difficulty, gameplay standards, copyright violations, and profanity.

Songs could be priced from $1 to $3, with artists receiving 30% of sales. The Network only supported creators residing in the United States, with content distributed to the US, Canada, and Europe.

Confirmed artists and labels

Several bands committed to providing songs. Jonathan Coulton demonstrated the authoring process for his song "The Future Soon" at the 2009 Penny Arcade Expo and committed to additional songs. Boston band the Bon Savants created blog videos explaining the authoring steps. Other confirmed bands included The Shins, Ministry, Evanescence, The Stills, Creed, and All That Remains.

WaveGroup Sound confirmed releases from Reverend Horton Heat, Steve Vai, and Widespread Panic. Umphrey's McGee announced plans for songs including "1348" and "Miss Tinkles Overture". Rapper Teflon Don was added for urban rap/R&B. Harmonix contacted major labels; Sub Pop planned to release all songs and albums on their label to the Network, including early music by Nirvana, Mudhoney, Sleater-Kinney, The Postal Service, and The Shins, with 25 songs prepared for launch.

Tony Kiewel of Sub Pop described the Network as another music distribution path alongside vinyl and CD. Flight of the Conchords announced three songs would come to Rock Band, later clarified as Network tracks. Label Side One Dummy announced The '59 Sound and Old White Lincoln from The Gaslight Anthem in early March 2010. On April 30, 2010, Rhythm Authors partnered with Sumerian Records to bring Asking Alexandria, Veil of Maya, and After the Burial to the Network.