Everyone in the music distribution business wants to be like Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) iTunes. No wonder. It has over 80% of the market. Rhapsody, a competing download service, said yesterday that its subscribers could play their music on the iPod. It feels that should improve their customer base. Maybe. But, probably maybe not.
Now, Nokia (NYSE:NOK) has signed up Warner Music (NYSE:WMG) to its mobile phone music service. The big handset company has done deals with three of the four largest record labels.
According to the FT, "Consumers who buy Nokia phones featuring Comes with Music will be allowed to download as many songs as they like from Universal Music, Sony-BMG and Warner for a year." Now Warner is on board.
Getting a piece of the iTunes business will be hard, but Nokia probably has a better chance than anyone else. It sells 40% of the world's handsets, over 400 million a year.
But, consumers are used to getting their music from iTunes. Nokia may have a service, and it may have distribution, but it does not have a music brand or product loyalty in the download subscription business.
The loyalty part is important.
Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
7-01-2008 @ 5:02PM
gjgj said...
one thing that the nokia service has that seem like stone age is that only works with windows media player.. so where are the growing numbers of mac users to go? It will be balancing on apples 80% but it will not make a "itunes killer". i would like to know how they came the conclusion that the music used/sold will only work in a windows mediaplayer capable machine.