BROWSING: mobile music

The bloom is off the rose. And maybe it's about time.A longtime stage for all sorts of hyperbole, the CTIA I.T. conference this year is different. If Monday's pre-show events were any barometer, those of us in San Francisco this week are in store...

Editor's Note: Welcome to On the Margins, a feature for RCR Wireless News' new weekly e-mail service, Mobile Content and Culture. Every week, the RCR Wireless News staff considers events in the wider business world and how they could affect the wireless industry. --Peer-to-peer...

AT&T Mobility's data traffic is "growing like crazy," according to Mark Collins, the carrier's VP of consumer data. But whether users will actually pay for this stuff is still far from clear.Collins touted AT&T's "quite staggering" growth in messaging, and continued to hammer away...

AT&T Mobility bolstered its mobile music offering with plans to offer over-the-air access to Napster's 5-million-plus music tracks beginning next month. The deal builds on the carrier's current side-loading deal with the music giant as well as its over-the-air downloading agreement with eMusic.The service,...

The worldwide mobile music market will more than double in the next few years, exploding from $13.7 billion this year to more than $32 billion by 2010, according to Gartner Inc.But splitting up all that cash won't be easy.While boilerplate agreements don't exist in...

The following list includes venture capital and other investments into wireless companies announced during the past week. The value of the investment is included when available.--Catalyst Mobile: Sofinnova Ventures led a $10 million Series B funding round into Catalyst Mobile, which provides next-generation mobile...

Nokia Corp. stepped up its spending spree last week, agreeing to acquire digital mapping company Navteq in a blockbuster, $8.1 billion deal.The Finnish firm-which in the last year or so has out-shopped Paris Hilton-plans to spend $78 per share for Navteq, a 22-year-old, Chicago-based...

Editor's Note: Welcome to On the Margins, a feature for RCR Wireless News' new weekly e-mail service, Mobile Content and Culture. Every week, the RCR Wireless News staff considers events in the wider business world and how they could affect the wireless industry.--TV Guide...

Record labels and carriers are looking for creative ways to keep the lucrative ringtone party alive. But a handful of startups have taken a cue from music group REM, asking, "Why don't we give it away?"Ringtones for years have been the most popular type...

In another move indicative of the music industry's increasing frailty, two of its largest players are trying some new twists: Sony BMG Music Entertainment and Universal Music Group last week announced a new format they're calling the "ringle."Each ringle will contain one ringtone bundled...

The following list includes venture capital and other investments into wireless companies announced during the past week. The value of the investment is included when available.--BiTMICRO: Woodside Investments L.P. led a $9.3 million Series F funding round into BiTMICRO Networks. The company said it...

In-Stat last week touted a new study with the observation that "Competition in mobile video could threaten mobile operators."Duh.But the fact that In-Stat's conclusion is self-evident doesn't minimize the risk mobile network operators increasingly face in the broader digital entertainment arena. Carriers are on...

Apple Inc. slashed the price of its 8GB iPhone by one-third and, separately, the company launched a Wi-Fi storefront hawking full-track tunes and albums for the device.The company said it lowered the price of the 8 GB iPhone from $600 to $400, and discontinued...

Mobile advertising startup Quattro Wireless pocketed $12.3 million in a second round of financing from Globespan Capital Partners and Highland Capital Partners.The Waltham, Mass.-based company said it will use the cash to launch GetMobile, a self-service wireless advertising platform for advertisers and publishers. Highland...

Like a first-year student struggling with the violin, carriers have hit a lot of wrong notes with their music offerings.But that may finally be changing.Verizon Wireless last week garnered headlines by teaming with MTV Networks and RealNetworks on a new, cross-platform mobile music service....

Verizon Wireless is hoping it can make better music as part of a trio than it did singing solo.The carrier last week announced a partnership with MTV Networks and RealNetworks Inc. to challenge Apple Inc.'s dominant iTunes service. MTV will shutter its Urge music...

LG Electronics Co. scored a pair of carrier wins last week spanning the range of wireless offerings. One of the deals was with the industry's largest player and long-time LG partner AT&T Mobility, while the other was with mobile virtual network operator and first-time...

Editor's Note: Welcome to Reality Check, a feature for RCR Wireless News' new weekly e-mail service, Mobile Content and Culture. We've gathered a group of visionaries and veterans in the mobile content industry to give their insights into the marketplace. In the coming weeks...

AT&T Mobility is hawking its MobiTV, XM Radio Mobile and music portal services with the launch of LG Electronics Co.'s new trax handset, an HSDPA-enabled, clamshell-style handset. The handset will be available tomorrow at AT&T Mobility stores and online for $130 with mail-in rebate...

The nightmarish world of mobile digital rights management may have taken a small step toward sanity.Microsoft Corp. scored a big win last week, agreeing to license its PlayReady anti-software piracy to Nokia Corp. The world's largest handset manufacturer plans to embed the technology on...

Welcome to our Friday feature, Week in Review. Every Friday, RCR Wireless News will run through the major events of the past week, outlining what happened and speculating on what to look for in the coming weeks. Check below for news about carriers, handset...

AT&T Mobility is teaming with independent distributor eMusic to add over-the-air downloads to its mobile music offering.The carrier introduced a $7.50 monthly subscription service that includes five over-the-air, DRM-free tunes and duplicate copies for PC downloads. Subscribers can buy additional five-song packages for $7.50...

Editor's Note: Welcome to Yay or Nay, a feature for RCR Wireless News' new weekly e-mail service, Mobile Content and Culture. Every week we'll review a new wireless application or service from the user's point of view, with the goal of highlighting what works...

Worldwide mobile content revenues are expected to surpass $44 billion in 2011, more than double the expected $20 billion in revenues generated this year, according to iSuppli Corp.The mobile market research firm said the growth largely will be driven by rising demand for mobile...