

Approximately two weeks after we reported on TuneBoom Pro, a tool apparently used by major labels and indie artists to artificially inflate the number of times their songs had been streamed on MySpace, the site has gone offline. We had contacted MySpace about TuneBoom Pro, but it's unclear whether MySpace had anything to do with the site's disappearance.

Update: Bands Divided Over MySpace Play-Count Boosters.

One way or another, the site is offline. However, bands and labels looking for a way to fake MySpace popularity have plenty of other ways to manipulate their play counts on MySpace Music. A reader recently sent in a list of 46 alternatives to the possibly defunct TuneBoom Pro service.

Is it wrong to inflate MySpace song plays? If every other band and label is doing it, you almost have to – just like baseball players and steroids. It's unlikely that MySpace will be able to defeat every type of play count-increasing technology, just like it's unlikely that Major League Baseball will ever be able to do away completely with all performance-enhancing drugs.

For the music fan, the only sensible solution is to assume that ahigh number of MySpace play counts or a MySpace chart appearance may not mean anything.

The same goes for the number of Facebook friends a company has.

Leaving this dilemma aside for the moment, here's the anonymousListening Post reader e-mail that brought TuneBoom's possible closureto our attention (edited for clarity):

TuneBoom was great. I don't know if you wanted to shut them down ornot, but I could understand, as most of these are scams and you can'ttell which are which... lol... but TuneBoom was great – a nice bunch of guys! Theyreally cared, man... very pro. I used a few of the others and they wereterrible. TuneBoom did traditional marketing also and did pressreleases, all sorts of promo. I'll miss them... these others seemjust more like sharks.

If anyone has had a positive or negative experience with any ofthese other services, please drop me an e-mail by clicking on thelittle envelope symbol at the top of this post. I'll keep your name outof it – just wondering what they have been like to deal with, and whatthe results have been. Did one of these 46 companies help send yourband to the top of the MySpace charts?

Update: A Listening Post reader writes, "We have been using this program to add about 500 plays a day afterbeing told A&R people were looking for song plays and show adds. I

used to use a friend adder but that was a little sketchy and dangerous, [and] this thing can't get you busted. It's just an app that you download for$50 and [it] adds plays and or visits in any amount you tell it. You can doit via a proxy IP to look like you are getting listens from around theworld, and set the interval between hits. It can't get you in trouble, asyou could target a rival band... No dealings with the company but itworks."

www.getmyspaceplays.com

www.increasemyspacemp3plays.com/

www.mymp3plays.com/

www.increasemp3plays.com/

www.mp3songplays.com/

www.legaladder.com/

www.dj-express.com/

www.mysocialmarketing.com/blog/increase-myspace-profile-views-song-plays

www.gorillastats.com/

www.traffic4myband.com/

www.musicianfriendz.com/

www.maxplays.net/

www.lazymusicians.com/

www.jenerik.com/

www.somanymp3s.com

www.moresongplays.com/

www.mylivepromoter.com/

www.increasesongplays.com/

www.myspacesongplays.com/

www.hitslift.com/

www.spaceviewers.com/

www.turboviewsandhits.com/

www.mygetmo.com/

www.famepath.com/?&category=2

www.twentyfourhustle.com/

www.appleseedradio.com/

www.straightdopebeatz.com/myspacepromo.htm

www.popgainer.com/

www.myspacebooster.info/

www.indiosglobalspotlight.com/

www.addplays.com/

www.mybandpromoterpro.com/

www.drasticpromo.com/mp3.html

www.miamiii.com/

www.turbofriendadder.com/

www.myunlimitedplays.com/

www.diamondpromotionz.com/

www.mp3playsincreaser.com/

www.myspaceheat.com/

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Photo: Mike Licht