Muzak brand loses its name, becomes 'Mood'

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Muzak parent company Mood Media retired the Muzak name Tuesday after nearly 80 years. Muzak billed itself as the "founders of piped music and the science of how music affects the behavior of customers." Since 1934 their name has been synonymous with "elevator music" in the same way Xerox is synonymous with "copy."

Ontario-based Mood Media purchased Muzak in 2011 for $345 million to add to its sensory marketing portfolio, and the background music business has been generating 90% of Mood Media's sales. The company will rename the music brand Mood. Mood Media plans to update its "sensory marketing services," expanding the offerings of its "team of music gurus, visual specialists, sound and scent-tech experts,” who produce signage and interactive experiences

But no one doubts the familiar jazz and orchestral remixes will remain part of the shopping experience. Muzak's patented "stimulus progression," in which music is recorded in blocks that get gradually faster and brassier, was designed to stimulate workers to produce more quickly, with alternating periods of silence to reduce listener fatigue. Muzak was even piped into space for the Apollo 11 astronauts. Conduct a test with the track below.