March 4, 2005
Mobile music challenges 'iPod age'
Full-length music downloads on mobile phones have not taken off so quickly - held back by technical challenges as well as issues over music availability, reports the BBC. But the mobile music industry is confident that the days of dedicated MP3 players are numbered.
Gilles Babinet, chief executive of mobile music firm MusiWave, said: "Music downloads on mobiles have the potential to be the biggest-ever medium for music."
But there are hurdles to overcome.
Mobile phones offer limited storage for music - certainly nothing to rival Apple's 60GB iPod.
But the first mobile phones with hard disk players will be on the market soon and the current generation of mobiles using flash technology can store up to one gigabyte of music - enough for 250 songs.
One of the key elements of the Nokia and Microsoft deal is the agreed ability to transfer songs between a handset and a PC. The seamless experience of mobiles and PC downloads is approaching.
Mr Babinet said: "Today you use radio and TV to discover music. Tomorrow you will discover and consume music via one device - the mobile."
The Permanent Link to this page is: http://www.textually.org/ringtonia/archives/2005/03/007399.htm