14 DAY TRIAL // After turning down Samsung's acquisition offer, the flash-based memory vendor SanDisk has announced today the introduction of a new physical music format dubbed “slotMusic,” which will be delivered in the form of microSD cards. In addition, the company has also announced that its new media storage solution will soon become available from major labels, including EMI Music, SONY BMG, Universal Music Group, and Warner Music Group.
The rather interesting thing about the new “slotMusic” solution is that it will allow its users to enjoy pre-loaded, high-quality, DRM-free (Digital Rights Management) MP3 music from their favorite artists. However, in a world where Apple's iTunes store and Microsoft's Zune WiFi stores are gaining more and more fans with each day, the new microSD cards from SanDisk don't appear as a potentially successful solution.
“slotMusic offers consumers an immediate, tangible, and high quality alternative to CDs and digital delivery,” said Danielle Levitas, vice president, Consumer, Broadband and New Media, IDC. “This year, more than 1.2 billion mobile phones will ship globally, outstripping portable media players by nearly an order of magnitude - and this trend is accelerating.” Levitas further explained.
SanDisk is hoping that the new slotMusic microSD cards will become the first choice of mobile phone users, as it can easily allow them access to their favorite playlists, without the need of connecting to a PC or to the Internet. Naturally, the microSD cards are also targeted at MP3 player users.
As far as technical specifications go, the new slotMusic cards are capable of storing up to 1GB of media content, while the stored music track will be played back at up to 320 kbps. Being a DRM-free solution, users will also be able to store their own content on the card, turning the slotMusic cards into a multi-purpose storage solution.
A list of slotMusic albums is to be announced in time for the upcoming holidays, the company has also revealed.