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by Robert Thompson
The National Post
May 5, 2005
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Rogers Wireless Inc. will introduce a music
service on Monday aimed at cellphone users, offering content from Canada's
largest recording companies.
"Rogers has said they want to blow away the competition when it
comes to their music service," said an official involved in the
deal who asked to remain anonymous.
According to various sources involved with the Rogers music service,
the product will largely centre on the company's upgraded GSM network.
The network offers faster data-transfer speeds, allowing music to be
sent to wireless phones.
As part of the Rogers plan, cellphone users will be able to purchase
songs via their phones and have the songs sent to their home computers.
They will also be able to download the music directly to handsets that
have the ability to store it.
Mobile phones that also act as MP3 players have been a hot topic recently
given the success of Apple Computer Inc.'s iPod.
Rogers spokeswoman Heather Armstrong refused to comment, saying the
company would reveal its plans next week. No pricing details were available
and sources said Rogers would launch different facets of the service
during the coming months.
Rogers has trailed competitors such as Bell Canada and Telus Corp.,
which have been offering music services for a year.
Kaan Yigit, a consultant with Solution Research Group in Toronto, said
the Rogers music plan will target a demographic that readily uses cellphones
and is not worried about discretionary spending.
"The 15-to-29 demographic is where the action is," Mr. Yigit
said. "The wireless space has a lot more impulse and vanity buying
than almost any other area."
According to music industry sources, Canadian recording companies were
waiting for network upgrades before committing to the service.
"Our concerns were about what the user experience would be like,"
one source said.
A "recommendation engine" that refers users to music that
is similar to what they've purchased will be central to the Rogers music
package, sources said. "Rogers is going to offer a revolutionary
approach," the source added.
The company will also reward users who recommend music to friends if
the suggested tunes are purchased by them. Called "gifting,"
the concept is aimed at creating wireless communities that share similar
musical interests.
However, Rogers will not use Puretracks.com, the Canadian music downloading
service, as part of its music package. Rogers rival Telus Corp. currently
offers a branded version of the Puretracks.com service.
Rogers has a partnership with U.S. Internet giant Yahoo! Inc. in its
high-speed Internet service, leading some industry watchers to speculate
the companies might be combining to offer a music service.
The initial partners in the plan are Universal Music Canada, the country's
largest recording company, and Warner Music Canada, the No. 3 music
company.
However, sources said all of Canada's top four major labels are expected
to be involved in some part of the Rogers initiative.
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