Telecommunications technology provider L.M. Ericsson will team with Napster to offer a digital music service to wireless carriers, the companies said Wednesday.
The new offering, which will carry the Napster brand, will allow consumers to download full-track tunes to their handsets and PCs via both subscription and pay-per-song models. The service will go live in Europe within a year, the companies said, and initially will be available to carriers in Europe, Asia, Latin America and North America.
The deal will leverage Ericsson’s carrier relationships and wireless technology as well as Napster’s portfolio and high-profile name, said Carl-Henric Svanberg, Ericsson’s president and chief executive officer.
Other mobile content including ringtones, mastertones, images and video clips, will also be offered through the service, the companies said.
Motorola Inc. last year partnered with Apple Computer’s iTunes, but the service has received a tepid response from carriers. Motorola delayed rolling out a much-hyped “iTunes phone” after carriers reportedly balked at the device, which would allow users to download songs to a PC, then transfer them to the phone-effectively cutting operators out of transaction fees. The phone is expected to ship this summer.
In addition, Ericsson’s handset joint venture, Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications L.P., is planning a Walkman device that will marry music and telephony.
Ericsson and Napster said their business model “accommodates mobile operator participation in all revenue streams.”
“We gain access to the strongest digital music brand in the world and exposure to the largest music catalog available, which will not only increase our customer’s consumer offerings and revenues but substantially strengthen their own brand image as well,” Svanberg said.
