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Cingular Sells Music From Napster, Yahoo! Music and eMusicNov 2, 2006 Cingular Wireless is taking a decidedly different tact on its mobile music store. The carrier today launched Cingular Music, but instead of following in the footsteps of Sprint and Verizon, which both built their own music stores, Cingular is instead incorporating existing PC music subscription services such as Napster, Yahoo! Music and eMusic. According to Rob Hyatt, executive director, entertainment and premium content at Cingular, the company believes that most people store their music collection on their PC and this model allows them to continue to incorporate their online music library with their mobile phone. Existing or new subscribers to these online music services can pay slightly more to have their online music library incorporated into their mobile device. This service, however, is not available as an over-the-air (OTA) download service, at least not yet. A consumer must connect their handset to their PC with a cable to transfer their music collection to the mobile device. Hyatt says the company believes that the last thing consumers or record labels need is another music store. Plus, the company also thinks that the subscription model will drive demand because it provides a better value proposition for consumers. Currently, Verizon's V CAST Music, Sprint's Music Store and Amp'd Mobile's music offering all charge consumers per-song download fees for over-the-air delivery of the song rather than offering a monthly subscription fee. "Monthly subscriptions are as cheap as buying a new CD every month," Hyatt says. Monthly subscription fees vary by service. Napster charges $14.95 per month; however, Cingular and Napster are currently offering a free 60-day trial. In addition, consumers can play 99 cents and buy songs with the handset and then have them sideloaded onto the device later. Ericsson provides the underlying platform for Napster Mobile. Meanwhile, Yahoo Music! offers monthly subscription rates as low as $11.99 for access to its music portfolio. Songs sold at eMusic aren't copy-protected and don't expire. They will work with new and existing phones from Cingular. Hyatt says that Cingular takes a cut of the monthly subscription fees, which are slightly higher for consumers who want the mobile option versus consumers who only want online access to their music. In addition to subscription music services, Cingular also is teaming with XM Satellite radio to offer 25 channels of music for $8.99 per month. The service will launch later this week. The company also has a music ID service from Shazaam that lets users identify a song and purchase it by linking to the Napster library where songs can later be side-loaded. Cingular Music uses Microsoft's DRM platform, and Cingular is currently having that incorporated into handsets. The first handset available for the service is the Cingular SYNC from Samsung, an HSDPA phone with multimedia keys, a MicroSD memory card slot and a Bluetooth 2.0 support for headset compatibility. Hyatt says that more handsets are in the works and he expects two more to launch in time for the holiday buying season. |
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