On Nov. 18, a new breakthrough agreement linking technology with Christian music has now enabled Christian music fans to download music from the internet to their computers legally. The news conference which announced this new service was held at theLifeWay Christian Stores' headquarters in Nashville, TN., and included attendees such as Christian artists tobyMac, founding member of dc Talk and founder/co-owner/CEO of Gotee Records, and singer-songwriter Shaun Groves joined with Gospel Music Association President John Styll and representatives from Chordant Distribution Group and Liquid Digital Media.

The new service, offered a partnership between LifeWay Christian Stores and Liquid Digital Media, charges 99 cents for single song downloads and $10-$12 for full album downloads. All downloads are conducted in Windows Media format The no-monthly-fee payment system implemented to allow song downloads addresses the legal issue concerning music downloads online.

"LifeWay is seeking to bridge the illegal-downloads divide by providing people with an easy, affordable and legal way to download their favorite Christian artists," said Mark King, vice president of direct marketing for LifeWay Christian Stores.

"People downloading songs without paying for them has been an industry-wide problem for years," Styll said.

King also noted that the partnership will also provide Christian music listeners to visit the lifewaystores.com and conveniently shop for music, books and gifts.

Though illegal downloads has been a recognized problem, the digital milestone in Christian music will make a difference.

"Illegal downloads have been a growing problem in the Christian community, and they are causing economic harm to everyone involved in the music industry," Styll said. "We applaud LifeWay for taking this leadership role in offering digital music downloads for purchase on the Internet, as it is a practical solution to this very real problem."

To promote the new downloading service, LifeWay along with Chordant Distribution Group will give away one song per day for 30 days as part of their “30 for 30” national promotion which begins on Nov. 18.