14 DAY TRIAL // AT&T announced the launch of a wireless music download service with eMusic, the largest digital retailer of independent music. The new music download service is integrated with AT&T's Mobile Music platform and enables users to preview and purchase music tracks over-the-air from eMusic's catalog of over 2.7 million songs.
"eMusic Mobile will expand the audience for mobile music beyond the youth market by offering an alternative to the mainstream pop hits that have so far dominated over-the-air music," said David Pakman, eMusic president and CEO. "AT&T is a terrific partner for this service, and we look forward to offering AT&T's more than 63.7 million subscribers access to a rich catalogue that ranges from legends like Paul McCartney and Miles Davis to new independent stars such as Spoon and Arcade Fire."
The eMusic Mobile service is available for a subscription cost of $7.49, which entitles users to five music downloads per month, with the ability to purchase additional five-song packages for the same price whenever they want. All music tracks purchased using the service give users two versions of each song: one is deliverer over-the-air to the cell phone, while the other is sent to the user's home PC in MP3 format, from where it can be transferred on a music player or burned on a CD.
"eMusic Mobile is not your typical over-the-air service," commented Mark Collins, vice president of Consumer Data Services for AT&T's wireless unit. "This service, which is as unique as the independent artists found in the eMusic catalog, differentiates itself from the competition through its ease of use, subscription pricing model and the ability to play these tracks in any MP3 player."
eMusic Mobile will be initially available on a limited number of AT&T's mobile phones, including the Samsung a717, a727, new versions of the Samsung SYNC and the Nokia N75, with support for more handsets to be added at a later date. The music store will be accessible from the phone by clicking on the 'music note' key, choosing the Shop Music option and then selecting eMusic.