O2 announced today that it is planning to launch an O2 Music Service that will provide O2 customers with an open and user-friendly channel to buy and manage their music collections and downloads. The O2 Music Service which is due to launch later this year will allow customers to experience a truly converged mobile and home entertainment platform that will harness the strengths of a PC / web based music download service with the convenience of over-the-air mobile downloads for the first time. O2 customers will be able to search, preview and buy full tracks as well as 30 second preview clips from a large catalogue of songs via their handsets or their computers and port them to a wide range of digital devices. Tracks will be purchased through their O2 mobile phone account or with a credit card and will be in line with current pricing. O2 are currently in advanced negotiations with Loudeye to offer this service to its customers which will truly reflect the individual nature of music, selling tracks to individuals via a personal account that will not limit them to a single fixed device. The Loudeye platform will allow for multiple legitimate copies of tracks to be burnt to a CD, ported to compatible personal music players or even a games console. The Loudeye platform will allow anyone with a WAP connection to mobilise their music on a variety of the latest music enabled mobile handsets. “This service is being defined by how consumers actually want to interact with digital music. A user will have a single account through which they will be able to access and play music across multiple devices,” comments Grahame Riddell, Head of Content Marketing,O2 UK. “O2 Music Service will provide a platform for consumers to experience music on their own terms. We have designed the service to combine the strengths of a home entertainment solution with the ubiquity and freedom of a mobile device.” Features and highlights of the future service will include: · Mobile Music Download -shop access with song delivery & playback to the Mobile Phone, PC, Media Centre PC, Set top box or Xbox · Browse, preview and purchase songs via mobile or online · Burn purchased tracks to CD · users can tag tracks from mobile browsing to download at their convenience to any of their supported devices O2 was the first mobile operator to offer an ‘over-the-air’ music download service in 2003 and is committed to music through its sponsorship of high profile and grass roots music events as well as a range of music products and services.