Clear Channel launches festival with digital edge. (News).

Clear Channel Entertainment is bidding to bring the digital age to the traditional music festival market with the launch of a two-day "multimedia experience" during the last weekend in May.

The US giant says Download Festival is an attempt to combine the spirit of the interactive and digital age with a rock festival, mixing bands with SMS interactivity, downloads, webchats and live streaming.

Iron Maiden, performing their only UK gig this year, Limp Bizkit, who have not played in the UK for more than two years, Marilyn Manson and Deftones are the first acts to confirm for the May 31 and June 1 event at Donington Park which will cater for around 50,000 fans.

Clear Channel's European music CEO Michael Rapino says that he wanted to launch a new annual festival with "a point of difference", rather than competing over the line-up of acts with existing festivals such as Glastonbury and Reading. Clear Channel, which runs the OzzFest and rejuvenated Isle of Wight festivals in the UK in addition to a number of European festivals from Belgium to Italy, is assembling what it says is the first festival to feature a whole raft of consumer technology, including the ability to download tickets, burn CDs on site, text message and have web chats with bands.

"This is not a technology exhibition. We want to use technology to enhance the experience," says Rapino. "We want this festival to leave a ...