Liquid Audio has signed an agreement with BMG to provide the company with digital music services including encoding, hosting, digital rights management and clearinghouse functions.

The agreement will make both full-length recordings and singles by BMG’s artists available for sale as secure digital downloads through Liquid Audio’s network of retail and music Websites.

BMG will initially make more than 3,500 tracks available. Music fans will be able to preview and purchase downloads in both the Liquid Audio and Windows Media formats and transfer select tracks to portable devices. The offerings will include material by Santana, Christina Aguilera, Dave Matthews Band, Waylon Jennings, Barry Manilow and Aretha Franklin.

"BMG has cleared a significant amount of top quality recordings from some of the most influential artists in music today," said Dick Wingate, Senior VP of Content Development and Label Relations at Liquid Audio. "We are delighted to be releasing this content to our network of retailers and lifestyle sites via our end-to-end distribution system."

"Liquid Audio’s secure music distribution system and its global network of Web sites will provide BMG with tremendous reach to music fans around the world," said Bob Jamieson, President /CEO, BMG North America. "This agreement further demonstrates BMG’s commitment to creating a digital connection between our artists and their fans in a consumer-friendly way."